I Was the Supporter of a Popular Dungeon Streamer, but the Power Harassment Was Too Much, so I Quit. I’m Useless Anyway, so It Shouldn’t Be a Problem, Right? Huh? The Views Are Dropping Like Crazy? - 65

Chapter 65: Gathering of the Elites

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Odd Cat – 8th Floor Master Room.

I stepped into the room, which had practically turned into Abisu’s personal library. I had already made an appointment through a message. Inside the library’s master room, Abisu was already there, along with four others. I recognized all of them.

Sae Isshiki (17), supporter of Abisu Yuiga. Yun Kyou (25), an A-rank Seeker and director of Odd Cat’s Development Bureau. Kureha Utsugi (28), an A-rank Seeker affiliated with Odd Cat. Touya Aotsuba (16), an A-rank Seeker affiliated with Odd Cat. Wow. The core members of Odd Cat were all here. If Yuna Asahina were present, that meant every A-rank Seekers of Odd Cat were gathered here.

“Hey. Who the hell are you?”

The one who spoke was Touya Aotsuba, a man known by the alias “Shunsetu”. At his waist hung a sword-shaped OOPArt with a blue scabbard. His gaze was as sharp as a wolf’s, yet despite being a guy, his beautiful blue hair and well-defined features made him popular. His words and behavior were rough on the edges, often making him stand out in a bad way, but his skills were undeniable. Within Odd Cat, he was probably second only to Abisu.

“I’m Shibuki Hamura.”

Since we were the same age, I figured speaking casually was fine.

“I-I’m Koyuki Kisaragi…”

Kisaragi was already overwhelmed by Aotsuba’s presence. She was half-hiding behind my back.

“Hamura… Oh, right. The guinea pig for that knockoff OOPArts.”

The way he said it was rude. Well, something like that wouldn’t really get under my skin. 

Don’t underestimate the mental endurance I’ve built up from Mia’s power harassment.

“T-Touya-kun! That was rude of you to say it like that!”

A man with black hair and narrow eyes that reminded me of Ul—Utsugi-san—chided him, but Aotsuba completely ignored him. Utsugi-san looked like an average adult. He styled his hair with wax, wore a suit, and seemed properly put together. From his appearance alone, he looked like an ordinary salaryman. 

Which is why I didn’t understand. Why would someone like him…

“Nice to meet you, Hamura-kun. I’m Kureha Utsugi. Looking forward to working with you.”

“N-Nice to meet you…”

I shook his outstretched hand. Kureha Utsugi, aka “Guild Breaker Utsugi.”

This man had destroyed every single one of the seven guilds he had been a part of. One guild was destroyed due to the guild master’s extreme power harassment. Another fell apart because of a messy romantic entanglement among its members. Yet another crumbled due to financial disputes between Seekers and Supporters. Every guild he joined always collapsed due to internal factors. Most likely, he was the one causing it. And yet, there was no definite proof of it. There were no reports of him directly attacking anyone or being attacked himself. That, in itself, was terrifying.

Despite all these bad rumors, he still remained in a guild. That alone proved how formidable his skills must be.

“So, have you heard any bad rumors about me?”

“Huh? Oh, well… Yeah, sort of.”

There was no point in trying to cover it up. It was a well-known story among Seekers.

“Don’t worry about it! Those are just baseless rumors! Look, now that you’re actually talking to me, you don’t feel any pressure or anything, right? I mean, I don’t have the kind of presence that could manipulate people or anything.”

He was right. I didn’t get a bad impression from him.

“It really sucks, you know? Since I have such a weak personality, people always dump their problems on me. You could say I’ve got the typical ‘bullied kid’ aura.”

“Ah… I kinda understand that feeling…”

“You do, Kisaragi-chan?! I think we’re gonna get along great!”

Utsugi-san cheerfully patted both Kisaragi’s and my shoulders. His smile was natural, and the air around him was calm.

…He seemed like a good person.

“…Damn clown.”

Aotsuba muttered.

I didn’t miss the slight shift in color in Utsugi-san’s eyes at his words.

“That should be enough for introductions, right?”

As Abisu spoke, everyone turned to face her.

“As I mentioned in my message, one of my dear comrades was attacked. I called you all here to devise countermeasures for this incident.”

“From what I heard, that idiot Yuna got taken down protecting a Supporter.”

Aotsuba sneered.

“…Risking your life for a disposable tool? I don’t get it.”

That was something I couldn’t just ignore.

“You’re not seriously calling Supporters ‘disposable tools,’ are you?”

“Of course I am. They can be replaced as much as we need.”

He spoke without the slightest change in expression. It seemed he genuinely believed that from the bottom of his heart.

“They break easily and keep popping up. They’re just consumables.”

I clenched my right fist and glared at Aotsuba.

“What? You wanna fight, you fake Seeker?”

“…If you can’t understand the importance of supporters, then you’re the fake one. Touya Aotsuba…!”

Aotsuba drew his OOPArt blade. I stepped forward, raising my right fist. A fraction of a second—0.01 seconds before our OOPArts clashed…

“Alright, that’s enough.”

Utsugi-san stomped on the floor. At the same time, iron chains emerged from the ground, binding both my right arm and Aotsuba’s sword in place.

“You two. This is an urgent matter, isn’t it? This is no time for fighting.”

These chains… No, his boots. A silver light flickered across Utsugi-san’s right boot when he stomped. Was this his OOPArt? A power that let him summon chains from the ground?

“You think this is enough to restrain me?”

“And do you think that’s all my ability does?”

“……”

“……”

“……”

A tense silence settled between Aotsuba, Utsugi-san, and me. Then, breaking that silence—

“Wow~ You’re all fired up, huh~? Mind if I join in?”

Abisu’s words made Aotsuba click his tongue and sheath his sword, while Utsugi-san shrugged and let the chains crumble away. I also stepped back quietly.

“Good grief. Let’s get back to the main discussion, shall we? According to Yuna-chan… All eleven attackers were OOPArt users.”

All eleven of them…!?

“Not only that, but there were multiple identical OOPArts among them. OOPArts are supposed to be one-of-a-kind. No two should ever be the same. Based on their testimony, there’s almost no doubt that…”

Abisu’s gaze shifted to my right arm.

“… They were man-made OOPArts.”

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