When I returned from exploring the dungeon to save the world, I found out that my lover had been stolen, and I was blamed for the failed expedition. Enraged, I quit Japan's strongest party—only for them to self-destruct on their own. - Chapter 9
The live chat erupted.
“Wait… that’s Okita…”
“Why is he here? Why did Haruka call that useless guy?!”
Kazuno Akihito: “Okita?!”
“Useless? Are you blind?! Look at Haruka’s face! She’s overjoyed!”
“He came to save her. He answered her prayer!”
“Are you serious…? If he could do this, why didn’t he come sooner?!”
“Shut up! He’s risking his life!”
“If she called him while Kazuno was here, it would’ve just led to more infighting.”
“Kotone and Ayaka treated Okita like garbage. The ones who would’ve objected are all gone now.”
“But how did he just appear like that?”
“That charm… it was meant to protect Haruka, wasn’t it?”
“At least save Yokota… please.”
I ruffled Haruka’s hair gently as I surveyed the scene.
It was a disaster.
“Yokota-san?”
“Yeah, big brother, can you help? He protected me.”
“Of course. High Heal!”
I pulled Yokota closer with magic and cast a healing spell.
“…I…”
“SHE SPOKE?!”
“???”
Oh crap, she went silent again.
But damn… two years in the same party, and this was the first time I’d ever heard her voice.
It was surprisingly cute.
The chat exploded.
“Yokota is ALIVE?!”
“Haruka knew all along…!”
“Now they just have to escape!”
Haruka’s voice brought me back.
“Big brother?”
“Ah, sorry, I got distracted. So, I just need to kill that dragon, right?”
“Yeah, please.”
The chat went wild.
“NO! RUN!”
“Haruka, you saw it! You fought it! None of them even stood a chance!”
“Okita! Fine, whatever, just grab them and run!”
I turned toward the dragon, eyes narrowing.
“A Violent Dragon, huh? So it was after Kotone?”
The chat was confused.
“Wait, what does Kotone have to do with this?”
“Oh, the stream is still on? Yeah, when we explored the 96th floor last time, Kotone stupidly attacked it. It retaliated, nearly killed her, and I had to carry her out. I guess it’s been chasing her ever since.”
The chat fell silent.
Then, the reactions came flooding in.
“No… way…”
“What does he mean by ‘stupidly’ attacked? Isn’t that just normal combat?”
“You guys don’t get it. Dragons are proud. They respect power, but they HATE cheap tactics. If you can’t kill them in one blow, they’ll mark you as an enemy forever. It’s common knowledge among high-level explorers.”
“Kotone… lied. She said Okita was the one who messed up.”
Mikawa Yumeno: “She did say that.”
I smirked.
“Yumeno-san, long time no see.”
Mikawa Yumeno: “Likewise. Thank you for saving Haruka and Yokota.”
“Well, I’ll be right back. Gotta kill this thing.”
“Please, big brother.”
“…I’m counting on you.”
Mikawa Yumeno: “Do it.”
Man, two conversations with Yokota in one day. What a rare event.
But I wasn’t going to disappoint.
I turned back to the Violent Dragon.
“Die. Tartarus Porta.”
A black gate of magic erupted behind it.
Dark energy snaked around its limbs, binding it in place.
It struggled, roaring in fury, but couldn’t move an inch.
The massive black portal yawned open, large enough to swallow the dragon whole.
And then—
The pull began.
The Violent Dragon was dragged toward the gate.
Its body began to disintegrate, breaking down into glowing blue particles as it crossed the threshold.
It screeched, fired a desperate breath attack, and flailed wildly—
But the portal’s pull was absolute.
The beast vanished into nothing.
The gate closed.
The chat was silent.
Then—
“What… was that…?”
“Holy crap, it’s gone…?”
“One hit. He one-shotted the dragon…?!”
“Wait. If the dragon was erased, then that means… Kotone and Ayaka’s remains…”
I glanced at the chat, confused.
“Kotone and Ayaka disappeared? What do you mean?”
Haruka hesitated before answering.
“They… got eaten.”
“Oh. …Rest in peace.”
Kazuno Akihito: “You BASTARD, OKITA! You had that kind of power, and yet you fled last time?! If you could do this, you should have cleared all 100 floors!”
I rolled my eyes.
“Didn’t even let me explain before blaming me, huh?”
Kazuno Akihito: “There was NO NEED for you to run! You should have fought!”
“Kotone was barely alive after the dragon’s attack. Also, the dragon wasn’t a boss. It was a normal enemy on the 96th floor. There were hundreds of them. If I stayed, everyone except me would have died.”
Kazuno Akihito: “Do you know how many lives could have been saved if you just finished the dungeon?! Sacrifices don’t matter!”
The chat lost it.
“Wait, is this the actual Dungeon Association president?!”
“Jesus Christ, he just admitted he doesn’t care about human lives.”
“This is straight-up a black company at this point.”
“He’s only saying this because his son wasn’t part of the previous mission. He wanted Okita to die with the others!”
“Kazuno basically told Okita, ‘Go sacrifice yourself to clear the dungeon while we sit safely outside.’”
Kazuno Akihito: “T-That’s not true! I was thinking of humanity—”
“Screw off, man. You were ready to throw Okita under the bus and let the media tear him apart.”
“How much did you pay the press to ruin his name?”
“And the reporters went along with it? This is disgusting.”
“To be fair, blasting the media with magic wouldn’t have helped his case.”
I smirked.
“Actually, I was inside the Dungeon Association’s headquarters when the media swarmed me. That place allows free magic use.”
“Wait. What? That wasn’t public space?!”
“So they manipulated the footage to make it look bad?!”
“This is a whole new level of corruption…”
Kazuno Akihito: “Y-You’re all mistaken! This is a misunderstanding!”
“It’s incredible that you think you can talk your way out of this.”
Kazuno Akihito: “Okita! You’re no longer part of the Dungeon Association! You trespassed! I’ll have you arrested!”
The chat cracked up.
“Bro is mad.”
“He’s actually losing his mind LOL.”
A new name appeared in the chat.
Kamiyama Eiji: “Koichi, I’m glad to see you’re safe.”
“Wait… isn’t that Professor Kamiyama?!”
“Who?”
“Idiot! He’s THE leading researcher on dungeons and a government advisor!”
“So… really important?”
“Yeah. He’s one of the few people who can actually influence national dungeon policies.”
I smirked.
“Uncle. Sorry for worrying you.”
Kamiyama Eiji: “It’s fine. Kazuno-san. I’d like a public explanation of what you did to my nephew—the strongest explorer in Japan. Expect a formal government notice soon.”
Kazuno Akihito: “Wha—?!”
The chat exploded.
“HE SCREWED UP BIG TIME!”
“He exiled the nephew of a government advisor?! LMAO.”
Kamiyama Eiji: “Koichi, I have a request. Would you be willing to lead a proper Tokyo Dungeon expedition? You can choose your own team.”
“Sure. I’ll take Haruka, Yokota… and my summons.”
And with that, the chaos came to an end.
Support "WHEN I RETURNED FROM EXPLORING THE DUNGEON TO SAVE THE WORLD, I FOUND OUT THAT MY LOVER HAD BEEN STOLEN, AND I WAS BLAMED FOR THE FAILED EXPEDITION. ENRAGED, I QUIT JAPAN’S STRONGEST PARTY—ONLY FOR THEM TO SELF-DESTRUCT ON THEIR OWN."