Invitation, Executive Bureau, Chizuru Gen-Dissemos que montaríamos uma banda para a vida toda, que história é essa de Dragon Clan?(A nuvem fala é chuva.)

Inuyama賀 reached out and steadied him.

"There is no need."

Toyokawa Kiyokoku signaled that his words were not yet finished, so he looked up.

"There is one more matter."

Inuyama賀 said:

"It concerns the latest movements of the 猛鬼众."

"The 猛鬼众 are making moves again?" Toyokawa Kiyokoku felt a jolt in his heart.

"You could say that," Inuyama賀 said.

"Recently, the 猛鬼众 have been extensively helping hybrids with unstable bloodlines escape from within the family. Several have already succeeded."

"If nothing unexpected happens, these people will, under the guidance of the 猛鬼众, transform into 'Demons'."

Toyokawa Kiyokoku listened silently to Inuyama賀's account.

How to deal with members within the family who possessed unstable bloodlines had always been a deeply controversial topic.

Executing them outright would chill the hearts of the other family members; after all, most of these people were mutual relatives and friends, or perhaps childhood playmates and sweethearts. Such a one-size-fits-all approach would undoubtedly plant hidden dangers for the family's internal stability.

On the other hand, if they were left untreated and a member with an unstable bloodline lost control... if it happened within the family's territory, it would naturally be brought under control immediately.

However, if it occurred in an urban area or a remote village, it might even result in mountains of corpses and rivers of blood...

It was precisely like this that the 猛鬼众 were born, lingering within the shadow of the bloodline curse that plagued the 蛇岐八家.

They and the 蛇岐八家 were two sides of the same coin; no matter what, it was nearly impossible to eradicate them completely.

Therefore, the family generally constructed special 'schools' in remote areas to detain these hybrids who were at risk of losing control,

holding them there until they reached the age of forty, or until it was determined that the probability of their bloodline losing control had dropped to a critical threshold, before finally releasing them.

As for the 猛鬼众, in order to expand their influence, they would naturally attempt to rescue these compatriots—who were born as 'Demons'—ahead of time.

"Therefore, entrusted by someone, I am here to invite you to join the family's Execution Bureau."

"The fact that you were able to escape unscathed from the hands of the 猛鬼众's number two figure, the 'Dragon King', is already proof enough of your strength."

Inuyama賀 said:

"As a warrior of battle, drowning yourself in mundane trivia every day will only shackle you. Joining the Execution Bureau is the only way to fully unleash your talents."

"Most members of the family's Execution Bureau are overseas students who graduated from Cassel College. Who knows, there might even be some of your former classmates among them."

Classmates...

Hearing these two words, Toyokawa Kiyokoku sighed inwardly.

He pushed down that portion of the past he was unwilling to revisit into the depths of his heart, and then said:

"Thank you for the family head's kind intentions, but ever since I graduated... I truly have no heart left for that life of blood and fire."

"The only reason I remained in the 蛇岐八家 was because of my wife, Mizuho."

"My last intervention was to help the family secure a crucial 'key' to prevent it from falling into the hands of the 猛鬼众 and causing an even greater crisis."

"But if it comes to hunting down family members who are truly driven by circumstances beyond their control, please forgive me for declining."

"I am sorry."

Toyokawa Kiyokoku said.

He had expected Inuyama-sama to be angry, but to his surprise, the family head took the matter with complete equanimity:

"It does not matter. This is Kiyokoku-kun's freedom."

Toyokawa Kiyokoku asked:

"Was it the 大家长 who wanted me to join the Execution Bureau?"

Inuyama賀 shook his head:

"It was not."

A trace of doubt appeared in Toyokawa Kiyokoku's eyes, but Inuyama賀 immediately explained:

"It is a young man named Gen Wisesheng. He is the current head of the Gen family, and the 大家长 intends to groom him to become the next director of the Execution Bureau."

"However, as the director of the Execution Bureau, one cannot do without loyal confidants of one's own. Although he has the three highly trusted vassal families under his command, those vassal families ultimately exist independently of the Execution Bureau's system. To fully control the Execution Bureau, he naturally needs assistants from within this sphere."

"He is a young man urgently in need of proving himself, which is why he asked me to approach you."

Gen Wisesheng...

Toyokawa Kiyokoku silently repeated the name in his mind, and then said:

"I am sorry, but I have no such intentions at present."

"Very well," Inuyama賀 nodded. "Should you ever change your mind, simply make this call."

He drew a business card from his pocket, upon which was written a resolute signature:

[Gen Wisesheng]

His phone number was printed below, and the card was outlined with the shape of the Gen family crest, the 'Gentian', giving it an arresting and formidable aura.

Toyokawa Kiyokoku took the business card, pinching it between his fingers. He felt that compared to the cards he had previously used to dispatch members of the 猛鬼众, this one felt infinitely lighter.

"Gen Wisesheng is a young man of great courage. Many within the family hold high hopes for him, believing that he will be the next leader of the family, and that he will guide the family out of its current predicament."

Inuyama賀 said, sounding somewhat regretful over Toyokawa Kiyokoku's refusal to join the Execution Bureau.

Seeing that Toyokawa Kiyokoku had finished reading the contents of the card and raised his head, he continued:

"I have previously looked into the situation in your household. The reason the family agreed to let the Toyokawa branch family become independent in the past is actually not unrelated to your family's bloodline."

"Although you do not possess the bloodline of the Toyokawa family, your daughter is one of those who carry this bloodline in the present generation."

"I wish you good fortune."

Silence fell upon the room.

Toyokawa Kiyokoku bowed, picked up the 'Folded Moon' bestowed upon him by the 大家长, placed it into its box, and then left the room.

After closing the door, he casually picked up the briefcase he had left by the entrance,

walked out of the building—which resembled a movie production company—and got into his car.

Click—

The car door opened.

Toyokawa Kiyokoku did not place the 'Folded Moon' in the trunk; instead, he slid it into the gap beneath the front passenger seat of his Maybach.

This was a habit he had retained from his days executing missions at Cassel College. Even though he had not wielded a battle-blade or similar weapon for many years,

the instinctive reflex of keeping his weapon within arm's reach had never faded.

"Sigh."

Toyokawa Kiyokoku sighed.

Because he had to go out 'running errands' today, he had come to this company managed by the Inuyama family.

He had originally thought it was merely a matter involving a large-scale family investment in the pharmaceutical sector, requiring some communication and coordination on certain points,

never expecting to receive a personal invitation from the head of the Inuyama family—Inuyama賀.

It was only after meeting Inuyama賀 that he understood what was truly happening.

Whoosh—

The car started and merged into the flow of traffic.

The Execution Bureau, the 猛鬼众, Gen Wisesheng, bloodlines...

As he drove, Toyokawa Kiyokoku replayed the morning's conversation in his mind,

sorting the threads slightly before recalling the business card Gen Wisesheng had entrusted someone to give him.

"The 蛇岐八家 is about to undergo changes once again..."

Toyokawa Kiyokoku pondered.

He glanced at the time on the car's dashboard system and saw that it was approaching noon.

Toyokawa Kiyokoku suddenly remembered his daughter mentioning that tomorrow was apparently the Moon Forest Music Festival, and school might let out early today.

"At this hour... middle school should be wrapping up its final morning class soon."

"I've been working overtime until late these past few days. Since I actually have some free time today, I might as well drop by and pick up little Shoxiang."