TBETW Chapter 9

Chapter 9 – Diversion Team

Main Story 1, Chapter 3, Part 3

Novel Title: 獣はかくして囚われる (The Beasts are Ensnared This Way)

Author：風結子 沙野 (Fuyuko Sano)

Illustrator：小山田 あみ (Oyamada Ami)

Translator: K (@kin0monogatari)

Protagonists: 鹿倉 陣也 (Kagura Jinya -MC) & ゼロ (Zero -ML)

*Please read at freenovels.net, the original site of translation. TQ*

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“I’m too dependent on you. If I don’t break away, I won’t even be able to fight.”

That’s what Kagura said to Zero when he pushed him away. But in the end, wasn’t he just avoiding the fight altogether?

He lacked the courage to see what became of the girl with the rabbit mask.

He simply crouched, waiting for the nightmare to end.

***

“Kagura-san, Kagura-san.”

Sanae shook Kagura’s shoulder, pulling him back to consciousness.

“Hmm…?”

The room was now fully lit, and the brightness stung his eyes.

“Why didn’t you sleep on the bed?”

“…Ah, I must have dozed off at some point.”

“Please start getting ready. Elio said he’ll be showing us around the historic district today.”

The historic district was a UNESCO World Heritage site, packed with relics from the Portuguese colonial era.

“…Are we here for sightseeing or something?”

“Well, we are supposed to be a diversion team. It’s safer to be in crowded tourist areas, isn’t it?”

Though Sanae spoke lightly, his eyes held a sharp tension. He was likely trying to ensure Kagura’s safety by keeping them away from the Cotai district, the heart of the casino resorts.

―――…Well, that’s fine.

If they wandered around aimlessly, Aizawa and Somei, who should already be in Macau, would have more freedom to operate in Cotai. Perhaps Sanae had coordinated plans with Aizawa before they departed.

It felt like Kagura was still caught in the mist of his dream.

Following Sanae’s lead, he got ready, ate a small breakfast from the buffet despite his lack of appetite, and climbed into Elio’s car.

To get from Cotai on Taipa Island to the historic district on the Macau Peninsula, they had to cross a bridge over the sea.

“It feels nice, isn’t it?” Sanae said cheerfully. But the sky above the sea was dull and hazy, likely due to pollution.

To Kagura, this all felt like a waste of time. But Sanae eagerly asked Elio questions about the area and savored the Macanese cuisine during their late lunch.

“You know, Japanese and Chinese cultures have completely different roots,” Sanae remarked while eating a coconut milk chicken dish.

“Japanese fusion is about blending, but here, it feels like Portugal and China existed side by side without merging. Even the World Heritage sites are either purely Portuguese or purely Chinese. And Macanese cuisine isn’t really a blend with Chinese food—it feels more like Portuguese cuisine with spices from all over the world.”

Elio, who had been listening, looked slightly surprised.

“Sanae-san, you have amazing observational skills.”

Sanae puffed up with pride at the compliment.

“You’re like a clever otter,” Kagura teased, prompting Elio to clap his hands in agreement. “An otter! That’s fitting!”

After a bout of laughter, Elio’s face turned serious.

“We Macanese have also existed without truly blending. We’ve always seen ourselves as ‘Portuguese of Macau.’ Once, we held a privileged status due to our Portuguese lineage. But now, even under the ‘one country, two systems’ policy, the pro-China faction has complete control. Many Macanese have left Macau…”

“Are you considering leaving as well?” Sanae asked.

Elio’s tawny eyes narrowed with a hint of sadness.

“Yes. With increasing pressure from the Chinese government on the junket business, I’m seriously considering emigrating. When the time comes, I may think of myself not as a ‘Portuguese of Macau,’ but simply as a ‘Macanese’ longing for my homeland.”

As if reassuring himself, Elio continued, “Change is inevitable. I must adapt and move forward without fear.”

***

In the evening, they crossed the bridge back to Cotai and stopped at one of the largest integrated resorts.

The vast complex housed several luxury hotels, along with casinos, cinemas, international conference centers, concert halls, and even an amusement park. Families with children were a common sight.

Cotai was dotted with such integrated resorts, competing fiercely with one another.

As night fell, the neon-lit scenery took over. Looking around, Sanae sighed.

“Seeing it in person is incredible. I don’t think Japan’s IR projects could ever compete with this.”

“Japan’s strict regulations would just lead to something half-baked. To compete, it’d need to be a national project that brings in foreign investment on this scale.”

Hearing their conversation, Elio smiled wryly.

“Thanks to the success of Macau’s casino industry, education is free up to age 18, and medical care for the elderly, children, pregnant women, and cancer patients is free. Citizens even receive direct cash benefits.”

Sanae looked impressed.

“That’s like the large-scale version of how local taxes are reduced in areas with boat racing or horse racing tracks in Japan.”

As Kagura was about to climb into the back seat of Elio’s car to head to the next resort, his gaze was drawn by some invisible force.

A long, black limousine passed by, moving conspicuously slowly.

Through its open window, he saw inside.

His eyes met those of someone with piercing white sclera.

“—!”

It was Toono Ryouji.

Sitting beside him was a man with a strikingly beautiful, almost womanly face—Renjou.

“You’re so obsessed with me that you’re starting to look cute,” Toono’s overly familiar voice echoed in his mind.

Before he realized it, his legs were chasing after the limousine.

“Kagura-san! Wait!” Sanae called out behind him.

The limousine sped up, turning a corner and disappearing from view. Sanae, out of breath, grabbed his arm.

“What’s gotten into you?”

“…It was him.”

“Him?”

“The one who summoned me to Macau—it’s probably Toono.”

There’s no way Toono Ryouji being here at this time is a coincidence.

It’s clear that this wasn’t just Li Azhar’s decision—Toono was involved.

“Toono, as in Eastern Alliance’s Toono? Was he in that car earlier?”

Sanae murmured, dumbfounded.

“Smuggled into Japan, now sneaking out… he’s doing whatever he pleases, isn’t he?”

Despite being a wanted criminal, he moves freely, completely evading Japan’s police surveillance network.

Kagura clenched his fist, digging his nails deep into his palm.

He was forced to confront a truth he had tried to avoid, even though he had anticipated it somewhere in the back of his mind.

―――The Japanese people being sold here are those abducted by the Eastern Alliance.

“You’re about to be sold overseas, butchered into pieces, and tortured to death.”

That’s what Toono Ryouji had said to the girl in the rabbit mask.

At the ‘Invincible Castle’, those burdened with massive debts from gambling or drugs lose their identities and are sold overseas.

Kagura’s heart pounded furiously, his body trembling with the urge to chase Toono Ryouji.

―――Chase him? And then what?

Toono wasn’t alone—he had Renjou, the champion of the underground arena, with him.

Renjou had been saved by Toono in the past and was now his devoted follower. Both Toono and Renjou bore matching lizard tattoos, which Renjou treasured as a mark of their bond.

No matter how cruel Toono might be, or how he used Renjou, even forcing him into sexual services, Renjou’s loyalty remained unwavering.

Renjou would protect Toono at any cost.

―――And me…?

“Ugh… ngh…”

A groan escaped Kagura’s throat. His palms were slick with blood from his nails digging in. His vision wavered violently.

“Elio-san, I’m taking Kagura-san back to the hotel! Please help me!”

Sanae’s voice barely reached him through the ringing in his ears.

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*Translator’s Note: Ooops, I was wrong. It was Toono who wanted him in Macau. -K

Next update: 2025.11.25

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