Hakuto looked at the middle-aged man lying unconscious on the ground. After sending a message on his phone, he was ready to leave the place.
He didn't believe anyone would come to save this middle-aged man, as that would mean his trail would truly be caught without escape.
However, just as Hakuto was about to activate his ability and head toward Otosaka Yuu, the phone in the middle-aged man's pocket suddenly rang for no apparent reason.
Hakuto frowned. Normally, he wouldn't care about such things, but he still walked over, picked up the phone, and answered it.
"Tsk…"
After hesitating for a moment, Hakuto answered the call but didn't say anything, merely waiting for the person on the other end to speak first.
After a long while, a middle-aged man's voice came through the phone, with an Asian accent.
"Are you a supercomputer-level ability user?"
(๑•ี_เ•ี๑)? Another tail?
Hakuto paused for a moment, then directly activated his ability and appeared in the student council office of the Hoshino Umi school.
He connected to a computer, ready to trace the phone signal's source.
However, during this time, he had to keep the person on the other end of the line engaged. Although he could find the signal's origin very quickly, it would still take some time.
As always, hardware constraints were a factor; no matter how powerful the software, it still needed time.
Just as Hakuto was about to speak, the person on the other end spoke again.
"The abandoned factory on the north side of Tokyo, let's meet there…"
"Hm? Is the 'lure the tiger away from the mountain' plan this low now? Get rid of me, and let your team go after the ability thieves?"
"I'm not interested in ability thieves…"
"The middle-aged man with a European face didn't say that just now."
At this point, Hakuto had already traced the signal, and indeed, it was the abandoned factory on the north side of Tokyo, as the person had mentioned.
As for Otosaka Yuu, there was no need to worry. After all, he had hundreds of abilities, so there wasn't much of an issue for now.
"I'm not with him…" The person on the other end paused. "Some things can't be explained over the phone. Come over, and the ability thief is already heading this way."
Hakuto furrowed his brows. He had already received a message from Otosaka Yuu, so he was aware of this matter.
But the fact that the person on the other end had volunteered this information left him puzzled.
It was as if they were orchestrating everything, knowing everything in advance.
Moreover, the way the person spoke, it seemed certain that Hakuto would come to meet and discuss things.
From the tone of voice, they clearly knew Hakuto's abilities. In other words, they were openly sharing their location and risking a phone call with him.
This was like a sword hanging over their heads…
The audacity to hand their life over so casually intrigued Hakuto.
"Let's hope you don't die on the spot."
The next moment, Hakuto sighed, confirmed with Shunsuke that Yotsuba was fine, then activated his ability and headed toward the abandoned factory.
Less than a second had passed in the outside world when the gate of the abandoned factory on the mountain in Tokyo was violently broken open.
Hakuto's figure walked in through the door, following the light.
As he entered the factory, the surroundings immediately appeared in his mind.
On the second-floor support beams of the factory, two men stood firmly, looking as steady as Mount Tai.
It was as if they weren't the least bit affected by Hakuto's forceful entry.
One of the men, dressed in a suit, leaned over the railing and looked down at Hakuto.
"Supercomputer-level ability user! You really are fast…"
Hakuto didn't respond. He simply looked around.
"Stop looking, we're not carrying any weapons, just the three of us here."
"I know you're all full of lies, but do you really want to lie to me in person?"
"We wouldn't dare. I'm telling the truth."
Hakuto frowned but didn't pursue the matter further. He got straight to the point.
"No matter what you two want from me, it looks like you'll be coming to my base today."
"You're curious about why we came to find you, aren't you? Otherwise, you'd have attacked already."
"Don't act like you can see through everything. If you keep it up, I might tear your face off next second."
"Calm down. I haven't done anything to your people. I just made a phone call."
"Then what's the deal with Yotsuba?"
Hearing Hakuto's words, the middle-aged man suddenly slapped his forehead with a guilty expression.
"Look at me, I completely forgot about this."
He clapped his hands, and the other man beside him dragged a sack filled with things from behind. He brought it down from the upper floor.
"This is the person behind the abduction of Miss Nakano. The others you just mentioned should refer to him, right?"
Seeing the European-faced man in the sack, Hakuto frowned but didn't say anything.
"I know your ability can calculate what happened to everyone hours ago. You should be able to tell whether I'm lying or not."
"Also, a supercomputer-level ability user shouldn't have trouble telling lies, right?"
Hakuto couldn't understand how the person had obtained this basic information about him.
While he hadn't hidden his abilities, could someone really see his specific powers from an outsider's perspective?
But this wasn't important. What Hakuto wanted to know more was why, if the person understood supercomputers, they still seemed so confident.
"Thanks for the gift, but you two still have to come with me."
Hakuto kicked the European man who had passed out in the sack aside and continued to speak to the men upstairs.
"By following this man, you should be able to expose everyone behind this. Then, you and your teammates won't have to be so careful anymore."
"Is that so? Let me find out who's behind you, and we'll talk about it then."
Hakuto didn't think this European man or his team posed any threat.
On the contrary, the man upstairs was a greater threat to him.
"We've been talking for so long, but you still haven't made a move. Looks like you really want to have a proper conversation."
"Alright, enough of your nonsense. I've had enough."
"Fine, then. I'll get to the point." The middle-aged man in the suit had a signature smile on his face.
"My goal is simple, join us, Shiratori Hakuto!"
"Ha~? If you came here just to say such nonsense, then you can come along with me now."
"Don't rush. I know threats and temptations won't work on you… But you're really too valuable."
"What do you mean?"
"Hakuto, do you know what you represent?" The middle-aged man in the suit seemed extremely excited, a familiar excitement that Hakuto recognized.
___
Read 20 Advanced Chapters on p@ tr eon (.) com/HalflingFics
Also, please point out my mistakes in the comment, thank you!
Don't forget to leave a review too~
Check out the other translations too
___