Night had fallen.
As usual, Eto arrived at Uchiha Byakuya's home.
"Uchiha-san, should we start with refining the manuscript, or do you want to talk about today's events first?"
She asked casually.
"How are your injuries? Nothing serious, right?"
Byakuya first inquired about her condition.
"Oh? You were so ruthless when fighting me earlier, and now you're suddenly concerned?"
Eto's tone carried a hint of grievance.
"..."
Byakuya wasn't sure how to respond.
If he hadn't fought her that way, he wouldn't have been able to get her to speak honestly, nor would he have had a natural way to bring Arima Kishou onto the same side.
"Anyway, can you explain everything to me now?"
Eto sat down on a chair, her small feet swinging back and forth habitually.
"Hmm…"
Byakuya figured it was time to reveal some things.
"Kishou and I are both half-humans from the Sunlit Garden; We grew up inside the 'cage' of the Washuu Clan, destined to serve them for life."
"Just as I thought… You two are half-humans."
Eto wasn't surprised, this matched her earlier suspicions.
She pressed further, "Then you must be with that organization, right?"
"That's right. Like your father before me, I became a Cleaner for V."
Byakuya answered truthfully.
At the mention of her father, Eto fell silent for a moment.
Hearing that Byakuya was the current Cleaner of V filled her with mixed emotions.
"So, are you really sure about joining forces with me-the leader of an enemy organization?"
Even now, Eto still found it hard to believe.
She knew that V treated its Cleaners well.
They only had to obey orders and eliminate threats, and in return, they lacked nothing in material comforts.
To Eto, killing was already second nature, so she overlooked what should have been the most important detail.
"Of course; You want to change this world, just like Kishou and I do."
Byakuya stated firmly.
"I see… That explains why you cared so much about that ghoul girl. How is she now? What was her name again? I'd like to visit her sometime."
Eto suddenly showed interest in the ghoul girl he had helped before.
"Her name is Uruka Minami, she's currently attending Seishin High School. Right now, she's receiving help from 'Anteiku.' As long as she refrains from harming others, she can live a normal life… under your father's watch, that is."
Byakuya replied.
"Tsk. Kuzen… That guy just wants to hide away and play the nice old man."
Eto pouted slightly.
She had never agreed with her father's beliefs.
Running a coffee shop in some quiet district-what was the point?
No matter how kind he was, he could only help a handful of ghouls at best.
If the world itself didn't change, ghouls would always be born into suffering, labeled as evil the moment they took their first breath.
"..."
Byakuya knew this wasn't the right time for him to say anything.
Although he deeply respected Kuzen, believing him to be a kind-hearted man, Byakuya couldn't deny that Kuzen had taken many lives-both human and ghoul before and after becoming a Cleaner for V.
Under V's coercion, Kuzen was also forced to kill Ukina, Eto's mother.
That incident, above all else, was the greatest wound in Eto's heart, one that she could never truly heal from.
Kuzen himself knew he was weighed down by his past sins. That was why, in the end, during the battle of Anteiku's extermination, he had sought death.
Byakuya was merely an outsider, but Eto was the true victim in all of this. That was why he felt he had no right to tell her to forgive her father.
Even for the sake of completing his system mission, he couldn't push too hard. That would only backfire.
"I've looked into your father's past; Under those circumstances, he really had no choice."
Byakuya spoke tactfully.
"I know. Of course, I know he had no choice. After all, every member of V is incredibly strong."
Eto lowered her head slightly.
"He killed my mother. That, I still can't accept but did you know? My mother first approached Kuzen just to investigate the secretive organization 'V'."
Her eyes darkened a little, "In other words, I was nothing more than an unnecessary byproduct of that mission."
That was what pained her the most.
Realizing she had said too much, Eto quickly changed the subject.
"Anyway, I don't want to end up like Kuzen. I want to do everything I can; Even if I die, I'll have no regrets."
"I understand how you feel but Ukina forced herself to eat human flesh for your sake, and Kuzen risked his life attacking the CCG for you; That's also the truth."
Byakuya said.
Hearing this, Eto fell silent for a moment.
"…I know.. That's why; After my first book gets published, I want to visit 'Anteiku' and see him."
Here it comes.
Byakuya immediately recognized this moment as a crucial turning point.
In the original timeline, Eto had taken her first published work, 'Dear Kafka', to Anteiku to find Kuzen.
But upon seeing him chatting and laughing with his employees, Koma Enji and Irimi Kaya, she had been overwhelmed with bitterness.
He had abandoned her in the depths of the 24th Ward, and yet here he was-living a peaceful, happy life with others.
She couldn't accept it.
She had crumpled the book in her hands and thrown it to the ground before turning away, never meeting with Kuzen in the end.
Later that night, when Kuzen went outside to clean up, he noticed the discarded, crumpled book and realized that Eto had been there.
By then however, it was too late.
From that moment on, their relationship only deteriorated even further.
Perhaps Kuzen felt too ashamed to seek Eto out, while Eto's hatred for him only grew deeper, making her unwilling to face him again.
As time passed, the last remaining shred of hope she had for her father withered away.
In her eyes, the entire world had become utterly hopeless and rotten.
That was why, by the time of the original story, reconciliation had become impossible and meaningless.
Eto no longer cared about making peace with Kuzen; all she wanted was to change the world.
"Alright. When the time comes, I'll go with you."
Byakuya wouldn't let things play out the same way.
At the very least, he would ensure that Kuzen and Eto met face to face.