Dominion Bond System: The Only Man Left Has A Yandere Girlfriend

Chapter 65: How To Catch The Only Man Left (AOI’S POV)

AOI TACHIBANA’S POV

The Adventurer Guild was packed today. Thanks to the mysterious Gate clearings, every guild had been put on hold.

"How can this be? I still need to make money," a middle-aged woman’s voice rang out behind me.

"I don’t think that’s the case. Since we now know it’s the Night Empress, why won’t the military allow us to raid?" another girl chimed in.

"Yeah, why?!" several people echoed.

The guild leader stepped forward. Her graceful presence instantly quieted the crowd of angry adventurers.

She spoke calmly. "Everyone, I know the current order from the military is frustrating, but all raids have been suspended for every guild. The military is still trying to identify and apprehend the mysterious Awakened known as the Night Empress. Until that investigation is concluded, all registered Gates will remain under military supervision."

Murmurs spread through the crowd.

Someone clicked her tongue.

Another person folded her arms in annoyance.

The guild leader waited for the noise to die down before continuing.

"I understand many of you rely on dungeon raids to earn a living. Believe me, the guild does as well. However, these orders came directly from military headquarters. They’re beyond my authority to overturn."

"But why are we being punished because of one person?" someone shouted from the back.

"Exactly!"

"What if she’s actually helping us?"

"She’s clearing Gates for free!"

Several voices immediately agreed.

The guild leader let out a quiet sigh.

"I’ve heard the rumors just like everyone else. Whether the Night Empress is friend or foe isn’t for us to decide. What concerns the military is that someone powerful enough to clear Gates alone has appeared without registering as an Awakened. Until they understand who she is and what her intentions are, they’ll treat her as an unknown variable."

She paused before adding in a gentler tone,

"So, I’m asking everyone to remain patient for a little longer. The guild will notify you the moment the suspension is lifted. Until then, please avoid approaching restricted Gates or interfering with the military’s investigation."

Many people grumbled, but they eventually accepted it.

It was frustrating for me and everyone else.

Several adventurers lingered around the request board out of habit, staring at the empty notices with defeated expressions. Others quietly discussed taking part-time jobs until the suspension ended. The usually lively guild felt strangely hollow without anyone preparing for a raid.

’Almost everyone here depends on Gate-clearing quests to earn money. The work is dangerous, sure, but we have no choice because it pays better than ordinary jobs,’ I let out a quiet sigh as I said goodbye to my teammates and left the guild.

Since Gate raids were on hold, there was no point in staying at the guild any longer.

The cab pulled to a stop in front of my apartment, and I stepped out.

I unlocked the door and pushed it open.

"I’m home."

I muttered as I removed my boots.

’I forgot... I live alone.’

I plopped down onto the couch, staring blankly at the TV.

I didn’t even feel like watching anything.

Instead, I picked up my phone, ready to doom-scroll and numb myself, only for the very first video that appeared to be another report discussing the Night Empress.

"This bitch... she’s cool and all, but she doesn’t realize what her actions are doing to adventurers like us who depend on quests," I muttered under my breath.

"But from what I’m seeing, she doesn’t look like an A-Rank Awakened. Or maybe she’s just the type of person who likes to play it safe."

I continued staring at one of the blurry photos.

"But why does she look familiar?"

The images were blurry and unclear, yet I couldn’t shake the feeling that I had seen her somewhere before.

After thinking about it for a few moments, I simply brushed the thought aside and was about to head upstairs to soak in the bathtub.

*Grumble~*

My stomach thought otherwise.

"I need to eat first..."

***

"Thank you for the meal," I said, clasping my hands together.

I picked up my chopsticks and began to eat. Though it was takeout, it was still good.

Not that I couldn’t cook. I just felt too lazy to.

After eating, I cleaned up before heading upstairs to soak in the tub.

The moment I stepped into the warm water, a wave of relief washed over me.

It felt as though I was melting along with all my problems.

I slowly sank beneath the water and held my breath.

’A D-Rank Awakened can hold their breath for over an hour.’

Sure enough, I remained underwater without feeling the need to breathe.

Only after nearly an hour and thirty minutes did I finally resurface.

"Huff... Huff... Haha." A small chuckle escaped my lips as I got out of the bathtub and dried myself.

~Ring! ~Ring!

I wiped my wet hair with a towel as I walked over to the bed where I had left my phone.

"Aunty?"

I muttered, staring at the caller ID.

Ever since my dad disappeared along with every other man in the world, I had been forced to live alone.

My mom died when I was only five years old. After that, my dad raised me by himself.

He was a wonderful father. He even took on both roles of a dad and a mom.

After awakening as a D-Rank, I started taking dungeon quests and earning money.

Eventually, I sold our old apartment and bought this one.

I didn’t want to, but my dad had told me to if anything ever happened.

Since I was already eighteen, handling the paperwork wasn’t difficult.

It was almost as though he had seen the future.

After he disappeared, my aunt tried to claim the apartment.

Unfortunately for her, it had already been sold.

She even tried to find me afterward. I never gave her the chance.

The Guild Master even helped make sure my whereabouts remained hidden.

~Ring! ~Ring!

The ringing snapped me out of my thoughts.

"After all these years... what do they still want?"

I still remembered how indifferent they became toward my dad and me after Mom passed away.

I let out a long sigh before answering.

A tired middle-aged woman’s voice came through the speaker. "Hello? Aoi-chan..."

Her tone dripped with fake concern. It made me frown.

I didn’t respond.

Seeing I hadn’t hung up, she continued.

"I know you hate us, but we’re still family..."

I scoffed. Still, I remained silent.

"I heard what happened. You adventurers can’t raid because of Miss Night Empress. She even cleared the Gates here in Cloudy City."

’Miss Night Empress?’

From the comments I had seen online, only her die-hard fans called her that.

Judging from my aunt’s tone, she was clearly one of them. The realization made my face contort into a strange expression.

"And since all the guilds are on hold, you’ll have nothing to do. Why don’t you come and see..."

Beeep...! Beeep...!

I ended the call immediately.

I already knew what she was going to say.

The shamelessness was unbelievable.

"Even if I become so broke that I have nothing left, I’ll never visit them."

I knew exactly what she wanted.

Money.

She had always wanted to leech off the money I earned as an adventurer.

Fortunately, she still didn’t know I lived in Plush City, which was close to Cloudy City.

I threw my phone onto the bed.

That call had completely ruined my mood.

Walking over to the window, I pushed it open. The cool evening breeze drifted inside as I took a deep breath.

My gaze settled on the apartment building across the street.

A frown slowly formed on my face. ’I still don’t know if it’s just my imagination, but...’

Then the memory of his back entering the sudden Gate that had appeared in our neighborhood resurfaced in my mind.

That back... It looked familiar.

I quickly grabbed my phone again and searched for one of the blurry photos of the Night Empress.

My pupils trembled.

"It’s him..."

My voice came out almost as a whisper.

"The Night Empress... is Reiji."

I took a deep breath, forcing myself to calm down.

If I reported this to the military, I’d probably receive a huge reward.

My life could go back to normal.

But another thought slowly formed in my mind.

If I used this information against him...

Knowing he was an Awakened, an incredibly strong one, I could take a share or all of whatever loot he earned from clearing Gates.

I’d become rich.

A sly smile slowly spread across my face.

Humans were selfish creatures. Everyone looked out for themselves.

Nobody was truly selfless.

Including me.

Still, catching him wouldn’t be easy. He was strong. Very strong.

"I’ll try talking first." I folded my arms. "If that doesn’t work..."

A small smile crept onto my lips.

"I’ll have no choice but to use force."

Staring at Reiji’s apartment across the street, a single thought echoed through my mind.

How to catch the only man left?