Chapter 160: An Unwanted Reputation
He looked directly at Raito.
"What matters right now... is you."
A brief silence followed.
"I want you to stay out of the public eye for a while. A week... maybe two."
He gestured lightly.
"Stay away from the media. Let everything settle down."
Raito said nothing.
Mesan’s smile thinned slightly.
"Right now, people are calling you a threat."
He exhaled slowly.
"You defeated multiple S-rank hunters... alone."
Another step forward.
"And you didn’t even look tired."
His eyes flicked toward the destroyed corridor.
"That door you destroyed... was made of mesilo—one of the strongest metals in the world."
A pause.
"It weighed over 45,000 kilograms."
Silence filled the space.
"And you sent it flying... with a single punch."
The guards swallowed hard.
Mesan looked back at Raito.
"And that..."
A faint smile returned.
"...wasn’t even close to your full strength, was it?"
Raito remained silent.
"So... everything that happened... the fight... everyone saw it, right?" Raito asked.
Mesan sighed.
"Yes. Definitely. Your father and your sister came back, but they were stopped and were almost arrested. I had to use some of my connections to get them released. They’re currently staying at one of my villas. It’s completely safe," Mesan said.
"Thank you, Mesan Nibori. I really appreciate it," Raito replied.
Mesan smiled faintly.
"Good. If you truly mean that, then I’m glad."
He paused before continuing.
"But there’s something I’d like to tell you."
"You defeated multiple S-rank hunters without much difficulty. I watched everything live. The entire country watched it on national television."
He looked straight into Raito’s eyes.
"And I could tell... you were holding back. Holding back by a lot."
His expression turned serious.
"Just how strong are you?"
Raito remained calm.
"That doesn’t matter. Just know this... I’m strong enough to protect myself."
Mesan nodded without another question.
The two of them continued walking through the facility. The passageway was reinforced entirely with thick steel, from the walls to the ceiling. Every corridor had been built to withstand overwhelming force.
Raito glanced around and let out a quiet sigh.
What happened has already happened.
There’s no changing it now.
But... what do I do from here?
What path should I take?
What am I supposed to do now?
After a while, they descended deeper underground. As they walked through the imprisonment section, Raito silently observed the massive facility that had taken nearly fifteen years to construct.
Eventually, they arrived at a secured passage where an armored truck was waiting.
Jiro was already there.
The moment he saw Mesan, he lowered his head respectfully.
"Thank you, sir," he said.
"It wasn’t a problem," Mesan replied.
He then turned to Raito.
"You two should go. They’ll take you to where your family is. Stay there for now."
Raito nodded.
He looked at Mesan one last time before stepping into the armored truck.
Jiro followed him inside.
"Thank goodness... we’re safe," Jiro said as he looked at Raito.
Inside the armored truck, several armed officers sat around them. Every single one of them was drenched in sweat.
What the hell...? Why are we even here? one of the officers thought.
Are we supposed to stop him from leaving? As if that’s even possible.
If he wanted to, he could rip our heads off at any moment.
I watched him on TV. He defeated multiple S-rank hunters...
The officer lowered his head, terrified. In fact, every soldier inside the truck looked just as frightened.
The armored truck drove out from the underground facility.
By then, the sky had already turned dark.
After nearly two hours of driving, they arrived at a massive villa.
Raito looked at Jiro.
"Stay here. Don’t come inside. Wait here, or go take care of whatever you need to. Check on Kira and make sure she’s alright. You can have them drive the truck away afterward."
Jiro nodded.
Raito walked toward the enormous front door of the villa.
He let out a slow breath.
They’re here...
He knocked on the door.
A few seconds later, it opened.
Aiko.
His elder sister stood there.
The moment she saw him, tears immediately filled her eyes.
"Raito!"
She threw herself into his arms, hugging him tightly. Her hands trembled, and tears streamed down her face.
A few moments later, his father walked over.
"Raito?"
He stared at him in disbelief.
"We heard what happened. We watched the news. What is going on? How is any of this possible? How are you this strong?"
He hesitated before continuing.
"We also heard... they might sentence you to death. There were so many reports."
Raito smiled faintly.
"Don’t worry. I’m fine."
He gently patted Aiko on the head.
She slowly let go of him.
"How are you two? I hope everything’s alright."
"We’re fine," Aiko replied softly.
Just then—
Raito felt it.
A sudden tightness gripped his chest.
His heartbeat became irregular.
He paused.
What the...
My head... it started spinning for just a second.
What’s going on?
Then he felt it again.
No... this isn’t coming from me.
Something isn’t right.
It’s like... I’m sensing an enormous burst of mana.
He rubbed his forehead.
"Are you feeling sleepy?" Aiko asked as they walked into the living room.
"This is where we’re staying. The villa is huge. There aren’t any workers living here. They came earlier to clean everything before leaving, so we have the place all to ourselves. Only the guards outside remain."
Raito simply nodded.
He walked toward the dining table.
"I just finished cooking," Aiko said with a smile as she placed the dishes on the table.
Raito sat down.
His father sat beside him.
He smiled warmly.
"I’m really proud of you."
"When you first told me you had become a hunter, I was worried."
"To be honest, I didn’t even think it was possible."
"But you surprised everyone."
He chuckled.
"And now... you’ve become an S-rank hunter."
"It feels like a dream."
"No one in our family has reached S-rank in generations."
He leaned back.
"According to our ancestors, we came from a family of powerful hunters."
"Even your sister reached the equivalent of C-rank during her assessment without any proper training. If she wanted to become a hunter, she easily could."