A few minutes later, a truck arrived. This was the transport vehicle Hayakawa Aki had called to move the devil's corpse; after all, they couldn't haul such a heavy carcass away by hand.
Otonashi Chiya actually had a method—he could use the Right Eye Kamui to suck the corpse into the Kamui dimension (alternate space) and then transfer it back out once they reached the civilian stronghold. However, it wasn't necessary. The side effects of "Kamui" were too significant to waste it on something as trivial as moving a corpse.
Accompanying the truck were two police cars tasked with securing the scene. Otherwise, the massive amount of blood left in the bridge tunnel would have caused a public panic if discovered by unsuspecting passersby.
They led the truck driver and two police officers into the tunnel. With the help of flashlights and illuminated helmets, the full scale of the devil's corpse came into view.
The truck driver gasped in amazement, "Whoa... Hayakawa, this devil you hunted is no joke. Impressive, truly impressive!"
He had been in this line of work for many years, specializing in transporting devil corpses for hunters. He had seen plenty of devils and felt no fear toward them; in fact, he was far more composed than the two police officers beside him. One look at the hard carapace and those heavy, massive claws told him this was a troublesome opponent. He hadn't expected Hayakawa Aki to be able to take down something like this.
"No, he's the one who killed it. It didn't have much to do with me," Aki shook his head, stating the truth plainly.
He knew very well that he hadn't been much help just now; it was essentially Chiya who had faced the Crawfish Devil head-on. Although Aki could have killed it if he had to, it would have required using the power of the Curse Devil...
"Him...?"
The truck driver turned in surprise to look at Otonashi Chiya standing beside Aki. When he first saw the boy, he didn't recognize him and assumed he was just a rookie civilian devil hunter. Aside from his peculiar eyes, the boy's simple smile gave off a harmless, innocent vibe. From a first impression, you'd never guess he was such a powerhouse.
This kid is actually that fierce?
The two police officers also looked at Chiya with surprised expressions, privately reflecting on how there seemed to be more and more minors becoming devil hunters these days. However, even though they weren't willing to pay the price to contract with devils themselves, they held no prejudice against hunters. After all, protecting people from the harm of devils was a job only hunters could do.
Otonashi Chiya remained silent with a smile, having no interest in boasting.
Shortly after, the truck driver called over several men. Using various tools, they loaded the devil's corpse into the back of the truck, applying specialized measures to suppress the stench so it wouldn't disturb pedestrians during transit.
Chiya and Aki took a police car, which escorted them back to the civilian stronghold. The truck carrying the corpse arrived at the underground garage of the stronghold at roughly the same time, making it easier to hand over the "cargo."
The stronghold took custody of the Crawfish Devil's body because the client who posted the commission specifically wanted the remains.
Currently, Chiya and Aki were sitting on chairs at the stronghold's front desk.
"Gentlemen, we have received the devil's corpse. Please wait patiently while we conduct an inspection. Once everything is confirmed, we will settle the reward for the commission," the female receptionist said to them with a beaming smile.
Hayakawa Aki remained silent.
Otonashi Chiya nodded slightly. "Alright."
"By the way, is the young man next to you Aki-kun's..." the receptionist added.
This young woman seemed quite familiar with Hayakawa Aki, addressing him directly by his given name.
Before she could finish her sentence, Hayakawa Aki cut in coldly, "Just a temporary partner."
Otonashi Chiya could tell at a glance that the young woman had feelings for Aki. However, at this point in time, Aki was still burdened by the blood feud of his murdered family; he had no room in his heart for romance.
"Oh? I thought you finally made a friend, Hayakawa-kun—and a handsome one at that."
Even with Aki's cold attitude, the young woman didn't seem the least bit offended. She wasn't just flattering him, either; Otonashi Chiya was indeed good-looking. His handsome, refined features paired with a soft, innocent smile made him feel approachable, while the Kamui-pattern Mangekyo Sharingan added a layer of mysterious allure.
Aki simply refused to respond further. He didn't want to get close to anyone right now; his heart held nothing but revenge.
After a short while, the base confirmed that the Crawfish Devil's corpse was in order. They handed over 400,000 yen in cash to Senya and Aki—the reward for the commission. The largest denomination in yen is 10,000, so 400,000 yen was essentially a stack of forty bills.
The client who spent this much to post the request naturally stood to profit. By selling devil corpses on the black market, one could easily make hundreds of thousands or even millions of yen. A Crawfish Devil was estimated to fetch around 500,000 to 600,000 yen. The client's profit came from the price difference—they provided the intelligence and hired devil hunters to do the heavy lifting.
"Oh? I just realized Hayakawa Aki and that strange kid are back. Looks like they finished the job?"
"Seems so. I remember the reward was 400,000. A target at that price range definitely isn't weak. That Hayakawa kid really is strong."
"..."
Whispers broke out among the others at the base. At that moment, Senya and Aki were dividing the reward. Senya's idea was to split it down the middle, and he handed twenty bills to Aki.
But Aki immediately refused. "No. I barely did anything. You take all of it."
"Why be so meticulous over killing a devil? Just take it."
Senya wasn't about to argue. He stuffed the 200,000 yen directly into Aki's hands. He wasn't the type to haggle over such things, and he had always admired Aki's character from the original story. If they were to be truly precise, they'd have to calculate the exact percentage of effort each contributed and divide the money accordingly—it was too much trouble, and he was too lazy for that.
"..."
Left with no choice, Aki accepted the money. At the same time, he made a mental note of Otonashi Chiya.
"This was a pleasant collaboration. Let's work together again if the chance arises."
Senya understood Aki's mindset—that he only wanted a temporary partner—so by taking the initiative to say this, he spared Aki any awkwardness.
"Mhm," Aki nodded, thinking that this arrangement was for the best.
Hearing their conversation, many of the bystanders were shocked. They had assumed Aki had carried the mission with his veteran skills, but it turned out to be the opposite. Could this rookie-looking boy actually be stronger than Aki?
Seeing that the boy was no longer staying as Aki's partner, several people immediately began to plot ways to invite this youth into their own teams.