"I don't know why, but you two smell… kind of fragrant…"
At that moment, one of the little girls couldn't help but say.
"Of course. That's because you're ghouls. The scent of food naturally smells delicious to you."
Byakuya explained.
Although he was a half-human and Eto was a half-ghoul, neither of them were pure humans.
However, their flesh was still considered delicious to ghouls. Only pure-blooded ghouls had flesh that tasted terrible to their own kind.
"Food?!"
One of the short-haired girls misheard Byakuya's words, and her first reaction was to assume that she was the "food" he was talking about.
But the other two little girls quickly explained to her, preventing the misunderstanding from escalating any further.
Then she asked, "What's a ghoul? We're humans."
As expected, they all believed that they were human.
"You should all be able to release your kagune, right? The thing that emerges from somewhere on your back and acts as a weapon."
Byakuya was quite patient as he explained it to them.
"You mean this?"
The golden-haired little girl tilted her head in confusion, then released her kagune.
She had a Rinkaku, and just like her hair, it was golden.
"That's right. Normal humans don't have something like this."
Byakuya said.
"That's impossible! Everyone has one!"
The blonde girl exclaimed in disbelief.
"Hold on, I'll get something to show you, and you'll understand."
The moment he finished speaking, Byakuya's figure vanished instantly.
"He disappeared?!"
The three little girls immediately started looking around, but no matter where they turned, they couldn't find where he had gone.
At this moment, Byakuya had already used Kamui's space transfer to teleport directly to his house.
He opened his refrigerator, took out three boxes of fresh 'meat', and then used Kamui to return to the underground world and landing precisely at the exact same spot as before.
The three little girls were still scanning the area for Byakuya when he suddenly reappeared right in front of them.
Naturally, this startled them.
"What the hell is wrong with you?! You just vanish and appear out of nowhere!"
"That's not the important part. What's important is what I have here."
Byakuya handed each of the three little girls a box of "meat", one per person.
"It smells amazing!"
Even though the meat was still sealed in the boxes, they could still smell the rich aroma wafting from within.
And, it was a completely unfamiliar scent. This meat smelled nothing like the food they had eaten before.
Since the ghouls of the underground world could only eat other ghouls, ghoul flesh usually tasted bad to them, some even found it disgusting.
So to them, these three boxes of "meat" were like the most exquisite gourmet feast imaginable.
"Guess what kind of meat this is?"
Byakuya asked in a mysterious tone.
"I can't tell. But it's definitely not human meat; human meat doesn't taste good at all!"
"Yeah, if we had any other food, I wouldn't want to eat our own kind."
"I heard from the elders that many years ago, all sorts of animals existed in the world. Their meat was supposed to be really delicious. Could this be…?"
They couldn't even imagine that the meat in their hands was actually human flesh.
"You're all wrong. The three boxes I gave you… this is human flesh. In other words, the same kind of flesh you've been eating all this time."
Byakuya said:
"And since she and I both count as humans, that's why you think we smell good."
"This… If we're not humans, then we're…?"
The three little girls found it difficult to accept all at once.
After all, they had believed themselves to be human ever since they were born. A belief that had lasted for so many years was suddenly being rewritten; it was impossible for them to adjust immediately.
"You're ghouls."
Byakuya answered for them.
"But whether you're human or a ghoul doesn't really matter. Look at us; there's hardly any difference in our appearance, right?"
He reassured them.
Then, pointing toward the massive 'dragon' corpse that could be seen everywhere, he continued:
"Originally, you were supposed to be human. But because of this thing, you were changed into ghouls."
"That Naagaraji?"
The three little girls looked confused.
They only knew that their world had been destroyed by "Naagaraji." They had no idea that it could also cause this kind of transformation.
"Yes, the 'Naagaraji' you speak of. The 'dragon toxin gas' it released can completely turn humans into ghouls. Your ancestors were transformed this way, and all the following generations have remained ghouls."
Byakuya explained in detail.
"I see… So, can I try this?"
At that moment, the short-haired girl, her mouth practically watering from the rich scent of the meat; couldn't help but ask Byakuya.
The other two little girls had the exact same thought. They looked at him with pleading, expectant eyes.
"Of course you can. Eat as much as you want. But it's not for free, you'll have to help us with something afterward."
Byakuya said.
"Okay!"
They didn't care what the task was. The first priority was eating the delicious food in front of them.
Besides, the big brother before them didn't seem like a bad person; after all, he had given them something so tasty.
Without hesitation, they eagerly opened the boxes and devoured the meat in huge bites.
As time passed, food in the underground world had become increasingly scarce.
After all, the only thing they could eat was their own kind.
But they would always prioritize hunting enemy ghouls over their own allies.
Because of that, they had never known what it meant to be truly full.
Now, after suddenly receiving a meal unlike anything they had ever tasted, there was no reason for them to hold back.
"So good!"
"This is amazing!"
Seeing the three little girls eating with such delight, Eto suddenly gave Byakuya a teasing smirk:
"Are you trying to lure in little girls with food?"
"I wouldn't call it 'luring', this is a mutual exchange, isn't it?"
Byakuya said calmly.
"But, now that I think about it… If 'dragon toxin gas' can turn humans into ghouls… then if the Washuu clan actually manages to wake the 'Dragon' up… doesn't that mean they could use it to transform every human in the world into a ghoul?"
Suddenly, Eto raised an alarming possibility.
"If that's what they really intend… then yes, in theory, it's possible…"
Byakuya nodded.
If the Washuu clan successfully resurrected 'Dragon' and if they insisted on protecting its core, then, there would be no one left who could stop it.
And in that case; every human in the world would eventually turn into a ghoul.