"How did you know who I am?"
Hearing Ryuya call out her name, the cute girl... no, it should be said, Takatsuki Sen, finally dropped her previous pretense and instantly asked with an expressionless face.
She had always protected her identity very well. Even when appearing as the One-Eyed Owl with the Aogiri Tree, she would make various changes to her appearance, etc. Takatsuki Sen didn't believe anyone could see through her identity.
When it came down to it, only a very limited number of people in this world knew her true identity, and Takatsuki Sen believed none of them would reveal her.
Her makeup, speech, and expression changes were flawless, she even slightly controlled her voice to make it cuter and more ethereal. Yet, Ryuya saw through her at a glance. This was utterly unbelievable to Takatsuki Sen.
'Could there be some huge mistake in my disguise?'
While thinking this, Takatsuki Sen was astonished to find that everything around her had suddenly frozen.
Yes, whether it was the customers around, the people outside the milk tea shop, the noisy wind in the air, the sound of the wind, the cicadas' chirping, the birds' songs, etc., every single one of them… the world seemed to have its time suspended.
Just moments ago, she was more worried about where her disguise had failed, as compared to her identity being exposed, Takatsuki Sen was more concerned about the flaws in her disguise.
But now, seeing the changes around her, Takatsuki Sen was stunned, uttering an incredulous question, "Altering the world?"
"No, just pausing time."
Shaking his head, Ryuya, who had become a Star God, perfectly integrated the power of Time from the Kabbalah with the power of the Clow Card.
Although he was only the weaker Star God, merely pausing Earth's time wasn't difficult for him.
Not to mention he currently bore the title of Earth King, and all of Earth's pan-consciousness would not resist him, so the consumption of magical and spiritual energy was naturally low.
He paused time for about 5 minutes for Takatsuki Sen to see, then resumed the flow of time.
"Just... pausing time?"
Her gaze wandering as she looked at Ryuya, Takatsuki Sen didn't know what to say. She had already obtained some information on the man before her, but now it seemed the credibility of that information was almost zero.
"Takatsuki Sen, let's chat somewhere else."
"Fine. My place isn't far from here. Come on."
Under the blazing sun, Takatsuki Sen's home seemed much cozier than Ryuya had imagined.
Inside the small apartment, various cute ornaments were placed around. There was almost no normal food in the house, just red wine, coffee, and bag after bag of blood.
Leading Ryuya back to her home, Takatsuki Sen let out a soft, relaxed sigh after entering.
"Phew... Alright, let me reintroduce myself."
"Yoshimura Eto, pen name Takatsuki Sen. Currently a working author, moonlighting as the leader of the Aogiri Tree."
In a teasing tone, the petite girl swayed the red wine in her hand and asked Ryuya if he wanted some.
"Hmm, is this a Cuvée Fée Jască dry red? I never imagined you'd like such a niche brand and such a girly red wine."
Sitting naturally opposite Takatsuki Sen, picking up the red wine on the table and pouring a little for himself, Ryuya took a light sip and spoke.
"Moldovan red wine has a fine, delicate entry, slightly sour and astringent with floral notes. Although I can eat ordinary human food, I prefer not to if possible."
"On the contrary, I really like the taste of red wine because it lets me savor different flavors."
"Speaking of which..." Seemingly surprised that Ryuya could name her red wine, Takatsuki Sen continued, "I thought a powerful person like you, Ryuya-sama, wouldn't care about small things like red wine. I didn't expect you to know about Moldovan wines."
"It's alright. Someone at home likes to drink this."
The girls who supposedly liked Moldovan red wine were, of course, Kaguya and Haruno.
Ryuya said time was short, as he still needed to go back and cook dinner tonight, so they should get straight to the point.
"Takatsuki Sen-san, there's something I need to tell you."
"Heh, please feel free to speak. After all, I think... I don't have the power to resist, do I?"
Knowing very little about Ryuya's existence, only learning from bits of information here and there… after all, the incident some time ago where False Suguru threatened the entire city with Cursed Spirits, only to be mysteriously erased by Heroic Spirits, was too big.
Having a covert cooperative relationship with the CCG's Special Class Investigator, the White Reaper, Kisho Arima, both Takatsuki Sen and Arima were actually hybrids of Ghouls and humans, just that Takatsuki Sen leaned towards the Ghoul side, while Arima leaned towards the human side.
Since their birth, the two had shared a common goal: to enable humans and Ghouls to coexist peacefully.
For this dream, Takatsuki Sen could sacrifice everything, searching together with Arima for the 'King' who could change the world.
Quietly watching Ryuya, Takatsuki Sen wanted to know what this powerful man wanted from her.
"Before I say what I want to do, drink this first."
Cutting his fingertip, then controlling his skin not to heal, he squeezed out a drop of blood.
As a fragrant scent spread wantonly, the blood of the Earth King, the Star God, was like the most delicious food, attracting Takatsuki Sen.
"..."
Unable to speak, her will completely shattered, looking at the drop of blood Ryuya squeezed out, Takatsuki Sen's eyes could only see that drop of blood.
She had never seen blood like this. Takatsuki Sen herself didn't eat human flesh, only drinking blood. After all, she was a One-Eyed Ghoul, with both human and Ghoul blood flowing in her veins, so her worldview was similar to humans.
But at this moment, for the first time, she felt that there could be such delicious blood in the world. It was a flavor that no known blood she had ever seen or heard of could match.
Attracted by this drop of blood, Takatsuki Sen, having lost her senses, watched as that drop of Ryuya's blood entered her glass, and then drank it.
"This is..."
The moment the blood went down, every cell in her body boiled, cheering. The world seen through her eyes became clearer and brighter. In that brief instant, it felt like she had experienced millennia of bliss.
Finally coming back to her senses, Takatsuki Sen found herself drenched in sweat.
Simultaneously, her entire body transmitted an indescribable feeling of comfort. This sensation...
"Unparalleled... What exactly did you give me to drink?"
Looking at Ryuya again, finding that the perception the man before her gave her was different from before, a bewildered Takatsuki Sen took a deep breath, wanting to get an answer from Ryuya.