The following morning.
Matsumae woke up early. She'd intended to wake Kanae as well, but noticed Kanae still seemed to be sleeping soundly, so she decided to let her wake naturally.
"Master, would you like me to prepare breakfast for you?"
Matsumae asked Byakuya, who was also already awake.
Though she couldn't eat human food herself, she knew how to prepare it.
The Tsukiyama Group had always maintained a human identity publicly, often hosting business partners with human cuisine—prepared, of course, by servants like herself.
"Sure. Thank you."
Byakuya nodded.
"Not at all. It's my duty."
Matsumae said.
Before long, breakfast was ready.
Now that there were six people living in this house, Byakuya was still the only one who could sit at the dining table and eat normally. The other five were all ghouls...
Since Kurona and Nashiro had gotten up a bit late, by the time they came downstairs, Matsumae had already prepared Byakuya's breakfast.
"Nashiro, I think we got up too late."
"Yeah, that woman beat us to it. The Tsukiyama family's servants really are impressive."
Just then, Matsumae heard the sisters talking but paid no attention to the content of their conversation.
"Kurona-sama, Nashiro-sama, would you like me to prepare breakfast?"
Matsumae asked them respectfully.
"No need. I usually eat out."
"No need. I only eat what Oniichan makes with his own hands."
Kurona and Nashiro replied almost simultaneously.
Clearly, Kurona and Nashiro had no intention of revealing their status as one-eyed ghouls in front of the unfamiliar Matsumae.
Without them telling her, Matsumae couldn't tell anyway.
As long as they didn't expose their kakugan, the only way ghouls could identify each other was by scent.
But artificial half-ghouls like Kurona and Nashiro smelled the same as humans—at most slightly more appetizing—so Matsumae assumed the twins were human.
When facing Rize, Matsumae asked the same question: "Madam—no, Kamishiro-san, would you like me to prepare breakfast?"
She knew Rize was a ghoul, and after last night's introductions, she'd learned Rize's name.
But knowing just her name, she still had no idea Rize was the "Binge Eater." Shuu had rarely mentioned the Binge Eater around her.
Since Rize was a ghoul, the "breakfast" Matsumae referred to was naturally human flesh.
Although ordinary ghouls only needed to feed once or twice a month to maintain normal nourishment, elite ghoul families like the Tsukiyamas enjoyed a lifestyle quite different from common ghouls.
For instance, breakfast might be a thinly sliced eyeball, lunch some other body part—essentially small meals throughout the day...
Even ordinary ghouls didn't consume an entire person at once when feeding; they'd preserve most of the body for later, just as Eto stored her "food" in a refrigerator.
"Oh? Why did you suddenly stop calling me 'Madam'?"
Rize asked at once.
"Because I made bold to ask the Master yesterday, and he denied that you were his wife."
Matsumae answered honestly.
"I see..."
Rize didn't say anything to Byakuya directly. Instead, she told Matsumae: "Then don't listen to him. You may continue calling me 'Madam.' Hearing 'Kamishiro-san' doesn't feel quite as nice."
"..."
At this, Matsumae looked toward Byakuya, seemingly seeking his opinion.
"No."
Before Byakuya could say anything, Kurona spoke up first.
"She's clearly not Byakuya-oniichan's wife, yet she wants to be called 'Madam'? Is Rize-san making things up?"
Nashiro was even more direct.
"I was merely offering a suggestion to Matsumae-san. It has nothing to do with you. Besides, don't you also call Byakuya 'Oniichan' without permission?"
Rize said with a smile.
"..."
Byakuya felt a headache coming on. Why were they fighting over something so trivial again?
"Alright, that's enough."
Byakuya cut off the dispute directly; he had something more important to say. "Matsumae, you mentioned preparing breakfast for Rize-san just now. Were you planning to get her human flesh?"
"Yes. I have foolproof methods for hunting."
Matsumae nodded.
She'd always been in charge of hunting for the Tsukiyama household, and she had extensive experience in this area—enough to ensure the CCG would never notice.
But perhaps because it was early morning and her mind was still foggy, she'd overlooked something.
Her new master was a CCG investigator...
"Did you forget? I'm an investigator. How could I possibly allow you to do something like that?"
Byakuya nearly laughed at the absurdity. "Rize-san's food situation isn't something you need to worry about. She works at Anteiku and gets enough carrion from there. And I won't allow you or Kanae to hunt humans under my watch. From now on, you'll both eat carrion at Anteiku."
Indeed, Rize had always helped Anteiku collect human corpses, even before meeting him.
It was just that this troublesome woman insisted on hunting freely in Ward 20 despite helping out—which was why she was considered part of Anteiku, more or less.
Under Byakuya's influence, she no longer hunted humans, but she still went out to collect bodies for Anteiku.
"I'm sorry. I'm terribly sorry. I can't believe I was so careless."
Matsumae finally realized her brain had short-circuited. She'd actually forgotten the Master was an investigator!
"It's fine. Just remember what I said."
Byakuya said flatly.
"Yes. I will engrave it in my heart."
Matsumae nodded.
...
Meanwhile, Kanae still hadn't come downstairs.
Matsumae was starting to feel anxious on her behalf. To think that Kanae would sleep in on her first official day of service—even back in the Tsukiyama household, such behavior would have warranted strict discipline.
Fortunately, this young man had a surprisingly good temper and hadn't taken offense. But Kanae couldn't possibly stay in bed much longer...
The worst-case scenario came to pass. A long time had passed, and Kanae still hadn't appeared.
Matsumae was even getting angry now, her opinion of Kanae dimming. How could this possibly satisfy the Master?
Had this been back at the Tsukiyama mansion, as Head Maid, she would have absolutely punished Kanae.
Matsumae requested directly: "Master, would you be willing to go upstairs and wake Kanae? I want to finish the housework and then get to Anteiku for work."
She also made sure to plead on Kanae's behalf: "Kanae may simply be unaccustomed to the new environment. I hope the Master will forgive her."
Her thinking was that Byakuya personally going up there would effectively intimidate Kanae, preventing future carelessness.
"Alright, I'll go wake her."
Byakuya didn't think much of it.
When he reached the door and knocked, there was no response.
He simply opened the unlocked door and saw the bedding still lumped up.
"Kanae. Time to get up."
Byakuya approached and called out.
But the lump under the covers still didn't react.
He raised his voice and called again. "Kanae."
Kanae had been deep in dreamland until she was jolted awake. The moment she sat up, she found Byakuya right there.
Her nightwear was disheveled, and she seemed disoriented from sleep. Her first reaction was that the Master had come to "assault" her.
Her hands flew to her chest—but almost immediately, she gave up resistance. Her face showed a mix of shame, indignation, and resignation as she presented herself in a posture of "take what you will."
She had already resolved to sacrifice everything for the young master!
...
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