Chapter 15
The headquarters of the Japan Hunters Bureau loomed like a fortress in central Tokyo-polished stone walls, banners of guild insignias fluttering in the late evening wind, and mana wards humming faintly at every corner.
Inside, the Bureau's top floor was silent save for the echo of footsteps.
Takeda , the White Tiger of Japan, walked with an aura that pressed against every corridor. He did not bother hiding his presence; when he moved, the air itself bowed to his existence.
And he had come for one man.
The S-ranker TANG SHI
Tang Shi stood in a briefing chamber, arms crossed, his face darkened with suppressed rage. The summon had irritated him he was no child to be lectured, he was an S rank hunter, one of the pillars of strength in Japan.
But when the heavy wooden door opened, and Takeda entered, Tang Shi's confidence cracked.
The SSS-ranker's mere gaze was suffocating. It wasn't killing intent no, that would've been merciful. This was weight. A pressure so heavy it made Tang Shi feel as though the very bones in his body were bowing, betraying him.
Takeda didn't sit. He didn't even glance at the papers stacked on the desk. His words were sharp, like a blade unsheathed:
Tang Shi. I've heard of your… interest in a certain civilian.
Tang Shi's jaw tightened. ❝Interest? He's no civilian. No ordinary man walks out of an SSS-ranked dungeon alive. Something's wrong with him. I just.....
Takeda raised a single hand, silencing him. The gesture alone carried enough authority to crush the rest of Tang Shi's words back into his throat.
Takeda's eyes narrowed, pale like sharpened steel.
❝You've watched him for half a year. You've stalked his movements. And still—nothing. I personally measured his aura. He has none. He is human.❞
Tang Shi's fists clenched, his nails digging into his palms until blood beaded. ❝Then it's a lie. He's hiding it. I know he is—❞
The air shifted.
Without warning, Takeda released a fraction of his aura.
The walls groaned. The polished wooden desk split down the center with a crack. Tang Shi's knees buckled instantly—he tried to resist, but his body betrayed him. His breath came in ragged gasps as the invisible weight crushed his chest, forcing him lower, lower, until he was kneeling on the floor.
Takeda stepped forward, his shadow stretching across Tang Shi like a predator over prey.
❝Listen well,❞ Takeda's voice was low, each word deliberate. ❝The Hunters Bureau does not exist to satisfy your grudges. If you so much as touch a civilian if a single hair on that boy's head is harmed
He leaned closer, and Tang Shi swore he could see the glint of death in his eyes.
I will kill you myself.
The weight vanished as suddenly as it came, leaving Tang Shi gasping for air, sweat pouring down his face. He trembled, unable to stop the shaking in his hands.
Takeda turned, his coat swaying with the motion, and walked out without another glance.
The heavy door closed. Silence followed.
Soon after his obsession Unleashed
For a long moment, Tang Shi remained on the ground, staring at the cracked floor. His chest burned with humiliation. His pride an S rank hunter, one of the pillars of Japan reduced to trembling like a dog.
Die by his hands? An abosolute mockery..The words echoed over and over. His heart pounded, not from fear, but from fury.
He slammed his fist into the broken desk, wood splintering into shards. Blood dripped from his knuckles, but he didn't feel the pain.
RENJI!!!! RENJI!!!!! RENJI!!!!!
❝Renji…❞ His voice was a whisper, laced with venom.
He thought of Renji's face. That calm, clueless smile. That quiet life. The sister he cherished so much.
Tang Shi's lips twisted into something cruel, deranged.
❝If I can't expose you… I'll destroy you. I'll tear apart the life you hold so dear.❞
His trembling stopped, replaced by a cold steadiness.
The fear Takeda instilled was still there, yes—but it was drowned under the tide of his obsession. No Bureau order, no SSS-ranker, no law could chain his hatred anymore.
For the first time, Tang Shi's intent solidified into a decision.
He would kill Renji.
And he would kill Lily.
Not as duty.
Not as investigation.
But as retribution.
And he would do it with his own hands.