Chapter 59 – A Sudden False Accusation

After ехiting thе Gаtе, Аsuto immediаtely hеаded fоr Fukuоkа.

It hаd bеen а while sinсe he lаst еntеrеd the wallеd citу.

Though the асtual journey hаd оnly been about thrее weeks, including the time sреnt in Return, he hаd beеn in thе Оutеr Region for neаrly two mоnths.

Не had grown quitе асcustomеd to life in thе Outer Region, but living соnstantly оn thе edgе of dangеr had pushed his mind tо its limit.

“I want tо slеep soundly and withоut worrу.”

Аftеr cоmpleting thе еntrу proсedurеs аnd раssing thrоugh the fivе-lауerеd gаte to reach the inner region, he checked his smartphone, but the screen remained dark.

It seemed the battery had died.

“Well, I can charge it later.”

He stopped by a Material buyback shop to sell the Materials he had acquired so far.

The pelt of the White Beast, a special Boss, fetched a staggering one million Yen.

He never imagined it would be worth that much.

Leaving the Material buyback shop, Asuto began walking toward a hotel.

“Someone who survived nights in the Outer Region is scared in broad daylight in the inner region? Pathetic.”

“Sh-shut up! It can’t be helped when I’m carrying this much money!”

“How pitiful…”

Walking with an awkward, suspicious gait from an outsider’s perspective, he entered a budget hotel.

Since it was just past two o’clock, he was able to check in smoothly.

Using the card key to enter his room, he collapsed onto the bed, lying flat on his back.

“I never thought I’d be able to stay in a proper hotel like this. Being a C-Rank Hunter is amazing…”

“You rented the lowest-tier room in a cheap hotel. Save that line for when you book a suite in a luxury hotel.”

“For me, just staying in a hotel is amazing.”

“Oh, is that so?”

While engaging in this meaningless conversation, sleepiness had stealthily crept up on him.

Life in the Outer Region had been more draining than he had realized.

“Oh right, my phone’s battery is dead.”

He connected the charger, booting up the smartphone while it charged.

As the OS started, the chat app immediately reacted.

New comments received. The count: over 100.

“Huh? What’s this? This is scary.”

The abnormally high number of comments jolted him awake.

Tentatively, he opened the app.

All the comments were from Kanzaki.

“…Did something happen?”

He hurriedly checked the chat.

<Mr. Yuki, it’s terrible. Can you check the TV?> 20:54

<CALL…> 21:10

<Missed Call> 21:10

<Mr. Yuki, what are you doing right now?> 7:59

<Are you okay?> 12:43

<Could it be you’re in the Outer Region?> 17:20

<When you return to Tokyo, please be careful…> 20:11

………………

…………

……

“What is all this?”

“What’s wrong, what’s wrong? What happened?”

“I got messages from Kanzaki… but I have no idea what’s going on.”

Throughout the entire chat, the messages were checking on Asuto’s safety, but he couldn’t tell what specifically had happened.

It would be best to check with her directly.

Thinking this, he began typing a reply.

<Kanzaki, hello.>

<Thank goodness you’re safe!>

<Sorry. I was in the Outer Region and couldn’t connect to chat.>

<I thought that might be the case.>

<Did something happen?>

<Well…>

The next moment, Kanzaki informed Asuto of a shocking fact he could never have anticipated.

<Mr. Yuki, you’re being framed as a murderer.>

○

Asuto immediately sprang into action.

Without sparing any expense, he purchased a plane ticket to Tokyo.

He managed to board a flight departing in just ten minutes, leaving Fukuoka behind.

His body was completely exhausted.

He would have preferred to sleep at the hotel, but that was no longer an option.

“Ah, man. What a waste, getting a hotel room and all.”

“It can’t be helped. The Hunter Association issued a summons.”

The summons issued to Asuto had a deadline.

If he didn’t appear by 24:00 today, his Hunter License would be revoked.

Thanks to that, he ended up having to buy a plane ticket to Tokyo.

The money he got from selling the White Beast’s pelt was now gone to zero.

But Asuto had no room to hesitate about spending the money.

“Why on earth am I being called a murderer?”

He had absolutely no recollection of such a thing.

However, a ‘what if’ possibility easily came to mind.

Three weeks ago, Asuto had nearly decimated the Hound Dog members who had invaded his Gate.

He could imagine this incident being connected to the current false accusation mess.

That said, while he had killed the Angel, he hadn’t laid a finger on any of them.

If anyone had died there, it would have been killed by the Hound Dog members.

In other words, someone had fabricated a lie.

(Who is it? Who’s trying to frame me?)

The first ones that came to mind were someone from Hound Dog.

It wouldn’t be surprising if they tried to pin all the blame on Asuto.

But that wouldn’t explain why the Hunter Association was taking such a strong stance.

Because Hound Dog was an Outlaw Guild that even the Hunter Association had trouble dealing with.

(If it were just suspicion, they’d probably just summon me without setting a deadline.)

The informant wasn’t Hound Dog.

Then who was trying to frame Asuto?

He thought about it, but no answer came.

“There’s someone who might know about this situation…”

His old friend Makoto, who belonged to the Hunter Association Management Department, would likely know the details.

But he had been trying to call him repeatedly with no success.

“…It would be easier to respond if I could grasp the situation beforehand, but there’s no helping it.”

Arriving in Tokyo, Asuto sighed at the unanswered calls.

It seemed he had no choice but to give up on gathering information.