Worthless Skill Escape (WN)

Chapter 97

TN: Please read my translations only on my website since I never give my permission to any site to host my translations. And if you like my translations, please support this site on Ko-fi and Patreon to read several chapters ahead!

Enjoy~

TL: ALT

Chapter 97 – Contact

“Looks like you made up your mind.”

Kudave looks down at me and says.

“Yeah. Thanks for waiting.”

After saying that, I was about to climb up on Kudave,

“Yuto!”

Serika came up to me.

There was a hint of nervousness on her face.

I had a hard time meeting her because of what had just happened, but the fact that she was here meant that something had happened.

“What is it?”

“I received a message from someone in the government. They want to know if Yuto Kurashiki is here.”

“Government?”

…Well, it’s a situation like that.

The government wants to gather information about the collapse of the Okutama Lake Dungeon.

There are only explorers in the area now, but some of them may have connections with the government.

More likely, some of them may have been sent by the government.

“I don’t know where the leak came from. I’m sorry I couldn’t hide it better.”

“It can’t be helped.”

It will be a problem when it’s over, but it can’t be helped.

Since they mentioned me by name, they must know I’m here.

Serika’s position is that she can’t just blurt out that there is no such person.

If I withhold information in such an emergency, the Paladin Knights might be blamed later.

“So what should I do?”

“We are connected through this tablet.”

Serika hands me a tablet that seems to be for guild use.

I thought it was the application for meetings… but it is a bit different.

It might be a top-secret government application or something.

But that wasn’t the important thing.

In front of a background that looked like the inside of the official residence I had seen on the news, a familiar face poked out of the chest.

“Seiji Tozaki.”

I couldn’t help but mutter the name.

The crescent-shaped eyebrows and lips give the impression of frivolity.

There was a congressman’s badge on the pinhole of his suit.

It’s not like the official residence, but it really was the official residence.

“It’s an honor to be known by a young man like you.”

His pale lips pinched the words.

“…Excuse me. May I call you Councilor Tozaki?”

I replied in a tone that respected his age and position.

“Apparently, you’re the one who holds the key.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t play dumb with me, Black Tengu.”

The Black Tengu―come to think of it, he’s looking for me, isn’t he?

More specifically, it was me who was supposed to know the “truth” about the flood in the Hikarigaoka Park dungeon.

From my point of view, it was like Junko Tozaki’s self-destruction.

“By Black Tengu, do you mean the explorer you mentioned earlier, the one you were looking for on TV?”

I asked, trying to play dumb.

“Yes, that’s right. I’ve already done my research.”

“Do you have any proof?”

“You called Miss Akinojo, the guild master of the Paladin Knights, right after the flood in the Hikarigaoka Park dungeon, didn’t you? From the street next to Hikarigaoka Park. This is a record of the communication. Rest assured, I did not have a warrant to intercept the contents of the call.”

Oh, so the police could find out if they wanted to.

Ever since I joined Paladin Knights, we’ve been communicating via guild chat on Dungeons Go Pro, so there’s no way they could have known how recent it was.

“It was right after the Double Flood, you know. Is it so strange to check on the safety of someone you know?”

Tozaki didn’t answer my question,

“The day after that, you deposited about 13 million yen in cash at a bank in your hometown; 13 million yen is almost the same amount that the dungeon boss would have dropped in the flooded Hikarigaoka Park dungeon. Is this a coincidence?”

“I don’t think there are many explorers who would immediately deposit their earned money in the bank just because they defeated a boss.

Most explorers would cash in their possessions when they needed them.

I can’t say this too openly, but if I leave it in the DGP, the authorities won’t be able to track my income.

But I have the unique and extreme circumstance of leaving my possessions behind every time I Escape.

If I want to keep my cash income, I have to cash in my mana coins and transfer them to my bank account every time I leave the dungeon.

It’s noticeable and, frankly, a pain in the ass.

Still, I am glad that my bank account balance is not included in the “money in my possession” for Escape.

It would be a nightmare to have my bank balance reduced by tens of percent every time I Escape.

By the way, it’s not enough to just put the cash proceeds in my wallet.

It is collected exactly when you successfully Escape.

It’s quite a horror phenomenon when money disappears from your wallet on its own, but it’s probably too late for that after you Escape.

Monsters respawning after a successful Escape is a familiar sight, but when I saved Honoka-chan for the first time, they were even manipulating people’s consciousness.

But I didn’t think they’d even check my account.

I don’t think it would have been possible to be that vigilant back then.

“But that’s not all. In the Tengumine Shrine dungeon where you are now, there is a monster called Karasu Tengu. This monster is said to drop an item called the “Karasu Tengu Mask” on rare occasions. Moreover, among the items that this monster drops, there is a rare item that is even blacker than the normal Karasu Tengu Mask, a deep black color that absorbs light.”

“I didn’t know that.”

That must have been the rare color.

“Of course, from what you say, I can understand why you might be tempted to suspect a connection between me and the Black Tengu. But this is all circumstantial evidence. It could be a coincidence.”

None of the stories Tozaki brought up are more than circumstantial evidence.

No, even if there was definitive evidence, it doesn’t mean that the “Black Tengu” did anything illegal.

In fact, I should be praised for quelling the floods in the Hikarigaoka Park dungeon and rescuing the destroyed Rakan explorers.

It’s just that I don’t want to stand out in order to hide the secret of my strength (and simply because of my personality preferences).

But now I have the support of the Paladin Knights.

Even if my abilities were to become known, I would not stand out much, as I would be drowned out by the prestige of Serika, who is highly ranked on the national level.

“It’s enough for me to be suspicious of you. I won’t arrest you and put you on trial. If I continue to mark you, you will eventually be cleared. No matter how competent an explorer you are, you will never be able to completely escape the Public Security Bureau’s surveillance. Once you become a target of surveillance, you are already doomed.”

The only bad thing that could happen if it is revealed that Black Tengu = me is that the same Seiji Tozaki finds out about it.

He even said this in a TV interview some time ago.

In order to avoid criticism of the black management of Rakan, the guild of explorers that his daughter was a member of, he tries to blame the mysterious Black Tengu for the destruction of Rakan’s explorer group.

Well, who would take the story of this well-known black businessman seriously?

“I’m sorry, but I’m in a hurry. If it’s a personal matter, can you make an appointment first? I have some business to take care of later.”

I said, changing my tone.

“No, it is nothing personal. I have heard that you are also involved in this matter. In fact, it is not surprising that the Black Tengu knows a way to solve this situation.”

“I thought you wanted to know the truth about the death of your daughter.”

“The truth? Is there such a thing? She was unable to control her subordinates; they revolted, flooded the dungeon, and died. I thought she was a girl who could do better. Valuable unique skills were wasted. And so was my investment in her.”

Tozaki says with a cold smile.

He is convinced that I am the Black Tengu, so he has no intention of making it up to me.

“Why did you adopt that girl?”

“I thought she had potential.”

“Because of her unique skill?”

“No, I adopted her before the dungeon appeared on Earth.”

“Then what did she have potential for?”

“The gift of domination. I believe that a strong sense of taste is a valuable quality to have when one is in a position of power over others.”

“You mean you made her your daughter because she’s a sadist?”

“A job more or less consists of manipulating others to behave in a way that suits you. Typically, it involves persuading others to buy things. As long as you think of yourself as a worker, you will never be able to do much work. You must be able to think in terms of making others work. This is a golden rule you should remember, and it will certainly come in handy in the future.”

“I will remember it well as the words of a black businessman.”

I said with a frown,

“That’s a bad sarcasm, isn’t it?”

Tozaki replied with a thin smile.

“You mean you’re used to being called that?”

“I don’t mean it that way. I just don’t understand it. What is so amusing about taking advantage of the shallow public opinion online and… making the successful people hate? If you have the time and energy, why don’t you start your own business? After all, losers are losers because they deserve to lose.”

“…That kind of thing takes talent…”

“Ha, even you talk like that. No talent. That’s a convenient word. If you pretend that you don’t have talent, you don’t have to work hard. You don’t have to wallow in mud for a handful of money. Do you know what it’s like for a business owner to have no money to pay his employees?”

“No…”

“Regardless of what people say, it is an undeniable fact that I have contributed to the economy of this country by providing a large number of jobs for the young people of the future. Even that nightmarish epidemic was overcome by a quick change of business model.”

“You cut a lot of jobs, didn’t you? The jobs you created were meant to destroy the ‘young people of the future.

“I am not God. There is no power to save everyone in a crisis. To help those who can be helped, you have to cut down on those who cannot be helped. As a for-profit company, it is inevitable that those who cannot meet the demands of their jobs will go out of business. If you want to fight reality, you can’t just talk nice.

But you know what, Kurashiki-kun? While I was fighting reality, what on earth were you doing? Have you been living a noble life so that you can criticize a businessman who is struggling with reality from a higher perspective? For your information, can you elaborate? What kind of honorable life have you led so far? Even I am not a wooden stone. If I am impressed by your way of life, I might change my behavior in the future, you know? Kukuku…”

“…That’s…”

Damn, he even knew that I was a shut-in.

Of course, he knows that his adopted daughter was the cause.

He knows this and enjoys poking my vital points without feeling guilty.

They are not related by blood, but his attitude reminds me of Junko Tozaki.

“Yuto.”

Serika holds my hand in the blind spot of the tablet.

The warmth and softness of the touch pulled my heart back from its dark and sinking state.