Hearing those words, Yomo Renji froze for a moment before he fully processed what was being said.
The other party had already recognized him?!
His expression shifted to one of utter shock.
He could hardly believe it, but since the man in front of him had spoken those words, there was no denying the truth any longer.
Terrifying.
Renji couldn't help but find this black-clad young man absolutely terrifying.
Not only had his strength been completely overwhelmed by the other party, but even his background had been thoroughly seen through.
"...Alright."
Renji didn't know what else to say, so he simply responded absentmindedly.
For Byakuya to say such a thing, and on top of that, now being the Manager's son-in-law, meant he truly wasn't an enemy.
Otherwise, Renji should have died back then; he never would've had the chance to join Anteiku in the first place.
The other staff members more or less understood that something had happened between Renji and Uchiha Byakuya in the past.
Though they weren't sure about the details, what mattered most was that Byakuya wasn't an enemy.
"Well then, Eto and I should probably head back now. Mayu, you can start getting to know Grandpa today, alright?"
Byakuya said to Mayu in a gentle but firm manner.
"Okay~"
Mayu obediently nodded without any sign of reluctance or hesitation.
After all, they had already discussed this before coming here.
"Huh? Mayu is staying here with us? That's perfect, Touka and Ayato will have another friend to play with!"
Kirishima Hikari said cheerfully.
"I'll look out for you, little sis. If anyone dares to bully you, just let me know."
Irumi Kaya reassured Mayu with a warm smile.
Even though they had only been together for a short while, Mayu already felt that everyone at Anteiku was very kind.
At first, she had been a bit shy and reserved.
But now, not only was her "Grandpa" here, but everyone was also so welcoming. With that, all her fears vanished.
"Then, I'll be counting on all of you."
With those words, Byakuya and Yoshimura Eto left together.
Not long after leaving Anteiku, Eto turned to Byakuya and asked,
"What exactly did you talk to my father about? You two were at it for quite a while."
"I revealed my identity to him directly. I also told him that I intend to overthrow the Washuu clan's rule, and of course, we discussed Mayu's situation. That's about it."
Byakuya gave a straightforward summary.
"You trust him that much? Honestly, even I can't fully trust my own father."
Eto remarked with a hint of surprise.
For some reason, she felt like Byakuya understood her father even better than she did.
"Yeah."
Byakuya nodded.
In truth, trust didn't even matter at this point; he was going to break ties with the Washuu clan soon anyway.
That said, he did genuinely trust Yoshimura Kuzen.
If it weren't for his lack of strength, then aside from Eto herself, there was probably no one who hated the Washuu clan more than Yoshimura Kuzen.
At least when it came to opposing the Washuu clan, Kuzen was someone who could be trusted without question.
"Alright, then."
Eto responded indifferently.
"But honestly, I was a bit reckless this time. What happened today could put Anteiku in danger, and it might even expose your identity."
Now that she had calmed down, she realized that her actions today had been somewhat impulsive, perhaps even outright reckless.
If the V organization started investigating Eto's connections with Uchiha Byakuya and Yoshimura Kuzen, things could get really bad.
"It's fine. They won't get the chance."
Byakuya said with complete calm.
"Really? In this situation, you don't need to deliberately comfort me."
Eto replied, half-believing and half-doubting his words.
Clearly, she had no idea what Byakuya was planning next.
"I'm not trying to comfort you. I'm telling the truth."
Byakuya said.
"...Alright then."
Eto figured he must have some kind of method. After all, this guy always had new tricks up his sleeve. If he did have a plan, it wouldn't be surprising.
Every couple of days, Byakuya would go to the Sunlit Garden to take Furuta and Rize out for some fun.
But this time was different.
"Furuta, have you thought about your plan?"
Byakuya asked Furuta directly.
Furuta Nimura's face immediately showed a troubled expression.
"Sorry… I still haven't figured it out yet…"
No matter how hard he thought about it, he couldn't come up with a way to escape with Rize while ensuring that Byakuya wouldn't be put in danger.
He had been agonizing over this problem for quite some time.
"It doesn't matter. We'll just do it directly."
Byakuya said.
"...Do it directly?"
Furuta was confused by Byakuya's words.
"Just follow me."
Without further explanation, Byakuya took Furuta and Rize and left the Sunlit Garden; even going beyond the borders of the 1st Ward.
"This… This doesn't seem like the 1st Ward anymore, does it? Byakuya, you're not…?"
Furuta was beginning to realize something was off.
"Isn't it obvious what Byakuya-nii intends to do?"
Rize said to Furuta.
"But if we do this, won't Byakuya-nii be in danger?!"
Furuta immediately voiced his concern.
"You two don't need to worry about me. Just run as far as you can. Don't stop until you absolutely have to. Also, you should head toward the 6th Ward."
Byakuya instructed them in a quiet voice.
Then, without giving them a chance to argue, he pushed them forward while stopping in his tracks himself.
The reason was simple; Washuu operatives had been tailing them the entire time. In reality, the members of V could all be considered part of the Washuu family's forces.
The moment Byakuya had led Furuta and Rize out of the 1st Ward, their pursuers had only increased in number.
He had to hold them off here; only then could Furuta and Rize successfully escape the Washuu's control.
"Byakuya-nii!"
Furuta was hesitant to leave, but Rize grabbed his arm.
At a moment like this, she was far calmer and more rational than he was.
"Are you really going to waste Byakuya-nii's efforts? Besides, what can a weakling like you do? Staying here will only drag him down."
Furuta struggled internally.
But she was right; right now, all he could do was listen to Byakuya's instructions.
Then, Furuta and Rize ran with everything they had, darting into a complex alleyway to make pursuit more difficult.
The training they had undergone finally paid off; in the blink of an eye, they had disappeared.
[Ding! The host has successfully completed "Mission Three: Help Furuta Nimura and Kamishiro Rize escape the Washuu family's grasp."]
[Reward: 500 attribute points.]
[Mission Three complete. Mission Four activated.]
[Mission Four: Overthrow the Washuu family's rule.]
[Mission reward: 1000 attribute points.]