Chapter 4 – Dead Journalist
Main Story 1, Chapter 2, Part 1
Novel Title: 獣はかくして交わる (The Beasts Intertwine This Way)
Author：沙野 風結子 (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 knoxt.space, the original site of translation. TQ*
֍֍֍
The members of the semi-gang groups are like bacterias, breaking apart and coming back together.
It’s common for amateurs to take on roles as ‘receivers’ in special fraud schemes, like ‘it’s me’ scams, as if it’s a casual job. Even if you catch the receiver, it’s difficult to identify the main semi-gang group behind them.
Moreover, there’s been an increase in cases where the base of these special fraud operations is overseas, sometimes involving foreign crime organisations. These cases are cutting into the jurisdiction of the Organized Crime Division’s Section Two.
“Cases involving special fraud and human trafficking, where foreign mafias and the Eastern Alliance are believed to be collaborating, are surfacing one after another. We also have information suggesting that Enwu is involved.”
The bitter voice of Section Two Chief Takizaki echoed in the meeting room.
Fifty-seven-year-old Takizaki is a typical, old-school organised crime detective. Even when wearing an ordinary suit, he exudes a fearsome presence that makes him look like a yakuza. He has actively gathered information by interacting with crime groups, managing numerous S-informants over the years, and has succeeded in suppressing the heads of these crime organisations.
It was due to his skills that he became the head of the Organized Crime Division’s Section Two. However, with the division shifting to intelligence warfare, more in line with public security-style detectives, he’s been forced to struggle.
Still, his long-honed instinct for crime, developed over years in the field, remains exceptionally sharp. He also has the capacity to listen to the opinions of his subordinates.
“Prepare to increase collaboration with Section Five. In any case, we’re overwhelmingly lacking information.”
If they can’t get a clear picture of the enemy, they’ll always be on the back foot.
As tension filled the meeting room, there was a strong knock at the door, and a man in his late thirties entered with a slight nod.
“This is Tanishiro from the First Investigation Division. Sorry to interrupt with an urgent matter.”
“Oh? What’s going on?”
After bowing respectfully to the Section Chief, Tanishiro looked around the meeting room.
“Early this morning, the body of a man was found in Tokyo Bay. Cause of death: stabbing. It appears he was thrown into the sea postmortem. We haven’t identified him yet, but one of our detectives thinks he’s seen a similar-looking man who was a freelance journalist writing about foreign mafias. We would like you to help confirm his identity.”
As murmurs spread through the meeting room, Kagura thought of one man.
The man he’d encountered the day before yesterday―――Zero.
Zero had said he was following leads on the Eastern Alliance. And the Eastern Alliance often collaborated with foreign mafias.
Moreover, despite being unnecessary, Zero had interfered with the Eastern Alliance to rescue Kagura from being abducted. Although Kagura had closed his eyes at the scene and he was uncertain of the situation, there was a possibility that members of the Eastern Alliance had seen Zero’s face.
Even so, if the body found in Tokyo Bay turned out to be Zero, Kagura wouldn’t feel guilty or dwell on it as if it were his fault.
Lingering around criminal organisations involves accepting that kind of risk.
Kagura constantly reminds himself of this.
Aizawa, a mid-level officer in the Second Section, raised his hand.
“I’m familiar with journalists, so I’ll go check it out.”
After a moment, Kagura also raised his hand slightly.
“Let me confirm it too.”
Though he wasn’t troubled, he still felt a duty to verify.
Soon after, he and Aizawa drove to the police hospital in Nakano.
The body had already been examined and moved to the morgue in the basement. The moment Kagura saw the body, covered in a white cloth over its face and body, a faint, bittersweet scent filled his nose. After a second, he realised it was Zero’s scent.
Though he’d only spent a few minutes with that suspicious man and thought he didn’t care much whether Zero was alive or dead, it seemed Zero had left a surprisingly strong impression on him.
The fact that the body’s physique resembled Zero’s gave Kagura a tight feeling in his throat.
After joining his hands in a gesture of respect, Aizawa reached for the cloth covering the body’s face.
The tightening in Kagura’s throat intensified.
Holding his breath, he stared at the face as it was revealed from beneath the cloth.
…He exhaled softly, the tension in his shoulders dissipating.
Aizawa murmured.
“It’s Machida… Machida Shogo.”
Noticing the furrow in Aizawa’s brow, Kagura could tell Aizawa had interacted with this man multiple times.
When it comes to foreign criminal organisations and semi-gang circles, which are hard to get a grasp on, these freelance journalists often have far more information than the police.
On the way back to headquarters, Aizawa sat silently beside Kagura, who was gripping the wheel.
In that silence, Kagura found himself thinking about Zero.
A man with such agility… If Zero really was a freelance journalist as he claimed, he must know a fair amount of information about the Eastern Alliance.
―――If that’s the case, it might be worth keeping him close.
The thought of taming that beast-like man, who blended into the darkness, sent a chill down his spine.
“Well, things like this happen.”
When they arrived at headquarters, Kagura gave Aizawa’s shoulder a light pat as he stepped out, sounding like he was talking to himself.
While waiting for the elevator, Kagura decided to ask Aizawa just in case.
“Do you know a freelance journalist who goes by ‘Zero’?”
“Zero?”
“Yes, like zero, one, two, three.”
Aizawa tilted his head.
“Never heard of him.”
There was a moment when Zero introduced himself that made it seem as if he were lying, so even if he was really a journalist, he was probably using a different name.
“Are you trying to get connected with this journalist?”
Aizawa asked.
“I don’t even know how to contact him, so it’s not like I can connect with him.”
“Freelance journalists around this scene…”
Aizawa’s voice came with a sigh.
“…It’s not unusual for them to go missing or end up as bodies.”
Aizawa often drinks with freelance journalists, pulling out information as part of his job. But, of course, human emotions aren’t so simple to separate from that.
So, it’s as if he’s warning him to be prepared if they end up getting connected.
***
The investigation into the murder of freelance journalist Machida Shogo, suspected to involve foreign criminal organisations, led to the Section Two of Organized Crime Division assisting the First Investigative Division.
Since they needed to question foreigners, Kagura and Sanae, both skilled in languages, were frequently called in.
“It seems the Eastern Alliance is involved in this one too,” Sanae said as they entered the multi-story parking garage where their unmarked police vehicle was parked.
“Yeah. Lately, they’re mixed up in almost all of our cases in the Kanto region.”
“Domestic and foreign criminal organisations blending together… I guess we’ll see more of this kind of thing,” Sanae said, barely hiding his exhaustion.
“Well, at least the Organized Crime Division has stable work because of it.”
“With the decrease in yakuza activity, it’s all being taken up by semi-gangs and foreigners?”
Sanae gave a dry laugh, as if making a bitter joke.
“Mind if I stop by the restroom for a sec?”
“I’ll wait in the car.”
“Got it,” Sanae replied, running to the first-floor restroom. Meanwhile, Kagura climbed the emergency stairs and settled into the passenger seat of the car parked on the second floor. Just as he was about to close his eyes, a loud noise came from below.
A chill ran down his neck, and Kagura leapt out of the car, running down the vehicle ramp to the first floor. He spotted several men dragging a large burlap sack, which was writhing as muffled sounds came from within.
“Sanae?!”
Five men in black balaclavas were there. Two of them tossed the burlap sack into the back of a van parked on the first floor, and the vehicle took off.
“Like hell I’ll let you go!”
As Kagura tried to chase after the vehicle, two men tackled him. He elbowed one in the face and attempted to stand up, but a sharp jolt hit the back of his neck. A stun gun. His nerves tingled, paralysing him.
While immobilised, Kagura was gagged and had his wrists and ankles bound with adhesive tape before being stuffed into a burlap sack. He was then carried and placed in the back of a vehicle, though it seemed to be a different car from the one Sanae was taken in. Even as he groaned under the gag, he received no response.
The men in the front of the vehicle exchanged words like, “Well done,” and “We’ll switch the plates on the way.” It was a premeditated crime. And from their accents, it was clear they were Japanese.
―――The Eastern Alliance, huh.
֍֍֍
*Translator’s Note: You’ll get connected soon, Kagura. -K
*GLOSSARY:
- The ‘It’s me’ scam (sometimes called special fraud cases in Japan, or ore-ore sagi オレオレ詐欺) is a type of phone scam where criminals impersonate a relative, friend, or authority figure to trick victims into giving them money. In Japan, this has become a major social issue, particularly targeting elderly people. Police and media often group these under the broader category of “special fraud” (特殊詐欺, tokushu sagi). The reason they’re called “special fraud” cases is because they involve deceit over the phone or electronic means, rather than direct theft.
- S-informants: secret informants who provide police with inside information.
Next update: 2025.09.07
֍֍֍
