Chapter 525  

Omori felt like he was going to pass out after hearing Choi Yeonseung’s explanation.

...Could they do this?

Could they really do this?!

“It’s true.”

“Yes... I see.”

Omori looked out the window with a rueful expression; he felt like he had abandoned everything and could never return.

But perhaps jumping on the bandwagon was the best option.

***

[Dramatic escape in broad daylight: Omori, CEO of Raiden Holdings, flees overseas.]

[A huge gap in the Japanese justice system...]

[In regards to the assault that mobilized hunters, the detention center declared, ‘This is an unprecedented event...’]

[A scuffle on the overpass? Suspicions are raised about the so-called fight between hunters!]

[CEO Omori’s statement released!]

“What are you doing right now?!”

The officials were shocked by the sudden turn of events. They were supposed to keep Omori behind bars and slowly devour Raiden Holdings! But then, the CEO broke through the walls of the detention center, ran away, beat up all the hunters who were chasing him on the overpass, and made all kinds of accusations after fleeing Japan.

This was a huge blow to all the people involved, and the fact that it had reached the public eye was infinitely bothersome.

Apparently, Raiden Holdings and Dragon Industry had a pretty tight relationship...

“What is that guy Kimura doing? What the hell is he doing?!”

“Contact him now! Why isn’t he answering his phone?”

The A-grade Hunter, Kimura, was supposed to be in charge of their armed forces, but now he couldn’t be reached when he was needed the most. The officials hadn’t the slightest clue as to what the hell he was doing.

“Let’s mobilize the other hunters!”

“But it’ll be hard to control them without Kimura. You think it’s easy to find someone as discreet as him? If we tell those hunters any of our secrets, they’ll use it as leverage...”

-I offer my sincerest gratitude to Hunter Kimura. Without his aid, I wouldn’t have been able to escape.

-CEO Omori, are you perhaps referring to the A-grade hunter?! That Kimura?!

-Is it true that Hunter Kimura raided the detention center and helped you escape?

“...”

“...”

Omori’s shocking remarks at the press conference left all the attending officials speechless. What in the...?

“Kimura has completely lost his mind!”

“He’s defected!”

“N-no... He wouldn’t do something like that... Wasn’t he kidnapped?”

“How could an A-grade hunter be kidnapped?”

“W-well... If Hunter Choi Yeonseung was involved...”

“No matter how big the difference between A-grade and S-grade is, it makes no sense for an A-grade hunter to just get kidnapped like that. Besides, Choi Yeonseung wasn’t even operating in his own country! How can he get away with doing something like that in a foreign country?”

The officials jumped up and down in frustration, but that didn’t change the fact that they had been caught.

Public opinion was already turning upside down.

@Kimura_Kenji

-CEOOmoriisn’tguilty! Hehasfallenintoaneviltrap!

?If Hunter Kimura says this, I have no choice but to believe it!

?I never thought Hunter Kimura would say this! What a bunch of crooks those guys are!

@Namahage_Nakao

-That’s right. The people who wanted to take over Raiden Holdings at a bargain price set up a trap for Omori!

?Hunter Nakao!

?They are really evil!

Naturally, having a good reputation was important when it came to such battles of opinions. Once two Japanese A-grade hunters stepped forward and claimed Omori had been set up, public opinion quickly swept to their side.

Several major media outlets published articles disparaging Omori, but the public didn’t fall for it.

-I guess they’re nervous after seeing so many people rebuke them!

-They must’ve done some shady stuff. Those thieves!

-I feel sorry for CEO Omori! The anxious officials ramped up the intensity of their counterattack. They would’ve liked to confine this issue within Japan and solve it as such, but public opinion had become too hostile for that.

At this rate, it wouldn’t be long before the people would demand the officials to be removed from their positions.

[CEO Omori’s escape involved an S-grade hunter! A shocking accusation!]

[S-grade hunter instigated by the US... Japanese companies are in danger!]

[...]

[...]

The officials didn’t want to make more enemies, but it was sink or swim. It was all over if they were pushed back. They used their connections to have the media accuse Choi Yeonseung and the United States for this incident. It was a ploy to arouse people’s resentment.

However...

-You guys are really desperate!

-These shameless bastards are ruining Japan!

-You heartless pigs! Why would Hunter Choi Yeonseung do such a thing?

-Hunter Kimura wrecked the detention center, but you’re blaming it on Hunter Choi Yeonseung!

It backfired badly.

It hadn’t been that long since the invasion of the evil god constellations broke out. The incident of the Black Magician Who Shares Everything threatening the areas around Tokyo was still fresh in people’s minds.

At a time when the large clans were shaking and couldn’t even imagine defeating the constellation, Choi Yeonseung swooped in and saved the day, taking care of all the enemies. Thus, trying to tarnish his reputation was bound to end up horribly.

As public opinion boiled over in an instant, the officials had no choice but to lower their tails.

-Now that it’s like this, there’s nothing we can do. Let’s step back.

-Let’s put the blame on Fuji Group and Taito Group. Issue a statement saying that it was a misunderstanding. Apologize and nail in the idea that we have no intention of going for Raiden Holdings.

-Why is it that only our side has to do that?

-You can’t mess with the political world, right? The prosecution is also paying attention to the situation. At times like this, the businessmen are the ones who have to make a sacrifice.

They usually had a domineering attitude, but when something like this happened, businessmen were the weakest link. Since politicians and prosecutors couldn’t be sacrificed, it was the businessmen who had to carry the blame.

Obviously, the people on the corporate side were very dissatisfied with this, but they nonetheless sucked it up and did what they had to do. In any case, they wouldn’t be the ones coming forward in person. The right executives would step up in their place. -We will issue a statement and then mobilize the media to change the subject.

-I’ve asked all the politicians. It will be sorted out. Dammit! I didn’t think we’d end up like this because of Raiden Holdings...

The officials were still trembling with anger, but at least they could finally breathe. They thought their plan had accounted for any possible variables, but then some madman tore it all apart with force.

Who would’ve predicted that?

-...Ch-Chairman?

-What is it now?

-Right now, Prime Minister Tawada is... Prime Minister Tawada is...!!

-?!?!?

Frightened, the officials turned on the TV.

The prime minister came out and rebuked those involved in this incident.

***

“... I would like to apologize on behalf of Mr. Omori. I will not sleep until those responsible for this incident face punishment!”

“Waaaaaaah!”

“Tawada! Tawada! Tawada!”

The crowd cheered at the prime minister’s fiery remarks. However, his fellow party members, who had arrived late, glared at him as though they were going to kill him.

‘This madman is going to ruin us!’

‘Attacking people from the same party?!’

Who were the people involved in this incident? The members of his party and his supporters! If the prime minister stabbed those people like this... “Are you crazy, Prime Minister? Retract that right this moment!”

“What nonsense is that? I can’t do that. Justice is alive!”

The senior members of the party were on the verge of grabbing the back of their necks in frustration and collapsing. They couldn’t believe that a punk who didn’t know anything about politics was shouting like this about justice...

“With all due respect, it seems that you don’t know what you’re doing right now...”

“Bah! From the looks of it, this matter is being taken very seriously. I will distance myself from old-school politics.”

“No, you lunatic!” A senior politician snapped and tried to grab Prime Minister Tawada by the collar. It was terribly unfair that an imbecile who couldn’t even remember the names of his ministers was destroying the party like this.

“Hold back! You can’t do this!”

“Tawada! Tawada! Tawada!”

The prime minister walked away with a triumphant expression. Members of the party struck their chests with regret. How had they pushed such a madman to this position?!

***

“Everything’s been taken care of.”

“Th-thank you...” Omori nodded with a puzzled expression. No matter how he looked at it, he was still in disbelief.

He hadn’t expected this issue to be resolved just like that... The people involved in this incident were being dragged away in handcuffs, and the charges against Omori had all been cleared.

The most curious thing was that the prime minister had attacked members of his own party, and Omori couldn’t fathom why.

‘Could it be that I misunderstood the prime minister?’

Prime Minister Tawada kept making slips of the tongue and said strange things, but there seemed to be an ardent sense of justice in his heart. Had Choi Yeonseung been aware of that?

It was truly astonishing.

“You think I’ll just stay still when I go back?” Hunter Kimura gritted his teeth.

It wasn’t enough that he had been kidnapped by Choi Yeonseung and his social media account had been hijacked; now he was being portrayed as the hero who had rescued Omori. He couldn’t even imagine what the people in his circle were thinking of him.

Kimura was frozen by Choi Yeonseung’s gaze. He had spoken out of anger, but now it dawned on him that the hunter in front of him could kill him with the snap of a finger.

“You can talk as much as you want, but I don’t recommend it.”

“What does that...?”

“Think about it well.”

Choi Yeonseung showed Kimura people’s reaction to this incident, and Kimura’s expression stiffened. They were all praising Choi Yeonseung.

Even without seeing them, Choi Yeonseung could’ve told how positive their reactions were based on the tremendous amount of power of existence flowing into him.

This incident had garnered an enormous amount of support for him.

[Thanks to the enormous support, your power of existence has become even greater!]

[...]

In this situation, if Kimura went back and said, “In fact, Choi Yeonseung kidnapped me,” nobody would believe him. Rather, they would say, “You should keep your mouth shut if you were part of this, you bastard! Why are you shamelessly playing the victim card?”

“...”

Kimura was horrified as he realized just how helpless he was. Had Choi Yeonseung kidnapped him for this reason, to force him to become an accomplice?

“You... Was this your goal...? How...?!”

“Nah, I had no such thoughts.”

“...Don’t lie!” Kimura shuddered.

After becoming A-grade, he thought he would never be afraid of anyone ever again, but the hunter in front of him was scaring him senseless.

[The powerful fear you instill in your adversary has increased your power of existence!]

‘Isn’t this what evil god constellations do...?’

Choi Yeonseung was dumbfounded. Of course, there was nothing wrong with instilling fear in the enemy, but...

[The ‘Cat of Lava and Magma’ says to just accept that increase in your power!]

[The ‘Chef of Endless Gluttony’ advises that it is a good strategy to terrorize more enemies.]

“H-Hunter Choi Yeonseung... Hunter Kimura is utterly terrified...”

“Good. That way, he won’t do anything stupid.”

Choi Yeonseung decided not to care and looked away.

The Japanese prime minister was making further announcements.

-This incident didn’t end simply with the punishment of the officials involved! My fellow citizens, our investigation has revealed that a constellation has been lurking around!

“!”

Choi Yeonseung flinched.

Was it...?

-It’s the Greedy Owner of the Treasure House!

‘Phew.’

Choi Yeonseung was relieved.

“Wait, did you borrow the strength of the Greedy Owner of the Treasure House?” Choi Yeonseung asked Kimura in a puzzled manner. He didn’t recall seeing any powers being used...

‘Maybe I overpowered him before he managed to use it?’

Kimura shook his head. “No, there’s no such thing.”

“Then why did the prime minister just mention the Greedy Owner of the Treasure House?”

“They’re probably using the pretext of an evil god constellation to reduce their sentence.”

“I see. The evil god constellations are also having a hard time.”

-My fellow citizens, I hereby declare war against the Greedy Owner of the Treasure House! It’s not just Japan. We will join forces with countries all over the world to drive out the Greedy Owner of the Treasure House!

“...??”