On Top of the Food Chain

"I am a Ghoul," Kazuki muttered to himself, staring at the familiar ceiling of his room. His entire body still ached from falling off the water tower.

Kazuki had already confided in both Rika and Junpei about what had happened to him—the disappearance of his parents, the weird feeling of hunger and bloodlust, the never-ending pangs of hunger, and the gruesome scene in that back alley.

Junpei and Rika were the only people who could remotely help him out of his misery right now. That’s precisely why he was letting his desperate self trust them to such a degree.

Junpei was currently sitting at Kazuki’s study table, swirling around on the chair. Rika had gone back to her home to get some “supplies,” as Junpei had described them.

“I know you are having a hard time accepting it, but you have said that same thing at least a hundred times by now,” Junpei said, flipping through the books on the table.

“How do Ghouls even exist? And how do normal people not know about them?” Kazuki asked, still looking at the ceiling.

“I told you this before, but let me tell you again. Ghouls are creatures like you and I who live hidden within human society, and they feed on humans. There are two types of Ghouls: I like to call them Active Ghouls and Reactive Ghouls,” Junpei said, finally stopping his fidgeting.

“Reactive Ghouls, such as I, survive by eating corpses of people who committed suicide or people without families who died in hospitals. We have a contact who provides us with those bodies. Sometimes we cannot procure such bodies, and at that time, we have to hunt. We usually go for corrupt criminals and such, or sometimes middle-aged people living alone if no such individual can be found. In some rare scenarios, we even get to eat Poachers,” he continued.

“What’s a Poacher?” Kazuki asked, now his gaze fixed on Junpei.

“Poachers are humans with supernatural abilities called Marmic Powers. Humans who can utilize these Marmic Powers are called Awakeners, and among them, those who choose to work with the Japanese Syndicate to eradicate us Ghouls are called Poachers,” Junpei replied. There was a very minute shift in his tone for a second, but then he reverted back to his usual happy nature. "Oh, and while we are at the topic of Poachers, if you ever come across a person wearing a black nylon jacket, then runaway, that's what they usually wear. And, if a Poacher has some weird title by which they are called, then run away even faster."

“So, you are telling me that there are humans with supernatural abilities as well?” Kazuki said, shock clearly visible on his face. “How do normal people not know about them?”

“It’s simple really. The decisions for the entirety of humanity are made in dry conversations between a small group of people sitting behind closed doors in opulent halls. The powerful figures have made it so,” Junpei said.

After a short silence, Junpei broke the stillness, “Get up, Rika is here.”

Kazuki looked at him with a perplexed expression, then sat up on his bed.

A few moments later, Rika entered the room.

Kazuki looked at Junpei with a shocked expression, “How?”

Junpei kept quiet, only smirking at him.

Rika held a black polythene bag in her hands. “I brought it,” she said, handing the bag to her father.

“So, you feeling better, Mr. man-eating monster?” she asked Kazuki with a straight face.

Kazuki slightly smiled at this remark and nodded.

Junpei took out a burger wrapped in paper and threw it towards Kazuki. Kazuki was surprised but managed to catch it.

Kazuki looked at the burger in confusion, his gaze continuously shifting between the burger, Junpei, and Rika.

“Eat it, you’ll feel better,” Junpei said.

Hearing this, Kazuki’s eyes widened, “Is this—”

“Take a deep breath and take a bite,” Junpei said, his tone a little scarier now.

Kazuki gulped as he unwrapped the burger. He started sweating. His heartbeat began to race. Feeling the sudden dryness in his throat, he gulped again. Then it hit him—the familiar feeling of repulsion just by the sight of meat. Nausea took over him.

“I can’t… I can’t,” he muttered, his eyes filled with terror.

Suddenly, Rika, who was standing right in front of him, held his head tightly and used her other hand to shove the burger into his mouth.

“Take a bite,” she said.

Tears formed in Kazuki’s eyes as he reluctantly took a bite. The bun didn’t do anything to him. Nor did the vegetables or the sauces. But as soon as the meat hit his tongue, he felt his internal organs churning. It felt terrible, to say the least. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t get the bite to go down his throat.

“See, it wasn’t as hard, was it?” Rika said.

Kazuki felt nauseated, on the brink of vomiting. His eyes grew bloodshot as he stood up and rushed to the washroom.

“Something’s wrong,” Junpei said, looking into his daughter's eyes. “That was the meat we consume, right?”

“Yes,” she replied with a nervous nod.

After a few minutes, Kazuki returned, looking worse than before. He felt weak. His eyes were weary, and the tiredness was evident in his posture even as he walked.

“Did you feel the loss of appetite as soon as you saw that burger?” Junpei asked once Kazuki had settled down.

Kazuki nodded.

Junpei’s eyes widened as he looked at Rika, who was equally shocked.

Junpei gulped.

“You are not a Ghoul. You are something else.”

***

“Why is he here?”

“I heard it’s because he had to escort an important person.”

“Togashi Kufu, the guy from the Jinkxy scandal.”

The Osaka branch of the Japanese Syndicate was abuzz with whispers as someone significant had arrived from the Tokyo branch. Subaru and Naito had just entered the building and were waiting for the branch head to greet them.

Soon, the branch head arrived and invited them into his office.

Ignoring the murmurs around him, Subaru walked with elegance in every step. Naito followed behind, his gaze cold and unyielding.

Inside the head’s office, the three of them settled down, enjoying light snacks and cold drinks.

“I don’t see Mr. Togashi with you,” the branch head said, a slight warmth in his tone.

“We were attacked by Ghouls, and he died,” Naito replied indifferently.

The branch head seemed a little surprised but only responded with, “Is that so?”

In reality, Togashi had been killed by the driver, not by the Ghouls. All the Ghouls had been executed by The Executioner. But no one needed to know that.

The three of them smiled while eating.

Meanwhile, on the terrace of the same building, a man in formal wear stood, a dead look in his eyes.

Smoking a cigarette, he felt the wind hit his face.

“Tsk, just when everything was going according to plan,” he said, irritation clear in his voice.

He dropped the cigarette on the floor and stomped on it, rage swirling in his eyes, which had a hollow purple glow hidden in the depths.

After his anger faded, the Manager left to get some work done in his cubicle.