Chapter 83 The Man Who Only Knew Violence
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”Eiji. Don’t just stand there forever. Get the car around, quick. If some passerby wanders into this alley by mistake, they’ll call the cops on us.”
Through my blurred consciousness, Akuzawa’s rough voice reached my ears.
At the same time, he shoved a strip of duct tape between my teeth, gagging me, then wound my arms and legs tight.
The moment he was done, he immediately started searching my pockets.
”…Tch. Nothing on him?”
He spat out the words with annoyance just as a car backed up nearby.
Of course, my wallet and even the forged license were all inside the Interdimensional warehouse.
Anything that could lead back to James Masuda or me was hidden away.
But Akuzawa’s thick hands dragged me along the ground and tossed me into the rear trunk space of a van like I was baggage.
Part of it was his skill, but most of it was because of the heavy blows on my back—my mind was still foggy.
I couldn’t even move my body, let alone resist.
Just like that, I was kidnapped into the pitch-black van.
Maybe I had grown soft after getting used to a peaceful life.
To think I followed Akuzawa without doubting him, never suspecting a trap.
Back in the other world, I would have noticed the presence sneaking up behind me.
No, this was nothing but my own carelessness.
Bound and gagged, I clenched my back teeth hard.
It wasn’t from pain, but from shame at my own failure.
”Here, take your pocket money. You did well. I’ll take care of the rest alone, so you can head home.”
”What? But boss, I’ll help you to the end!”
”No. The more people involved in this kind of job, the easier it is to slip up. Especially punks like you, Eiji—you’d blab the moment things got rough.”
”No way… I’d never talk to the cops!”
”Idiot. This guy’s Yasunaga’s business partner. If he goes missing, Yasunaga’s bound to come looking. When the organization puts the screws on you, will you be able to stay quiet then? There are things in this world you’re better off not knowing.”
”Ugh.”
”Just take the money and go blow it on drinks. That way, I don’t have to worry about you leaking anything.”
”I see… understood. I’ll gladly take the cash.”
”Good. If something comes up, I’ll call you again.”
”Got it, boss.”
From inside the van, I heard Akuzawa chatting with the punk Eiji.
A moment later, I could feel Eiji leaving.
Then the pedal slammed down and the van lurched forward.
I endured the pain, lying crumpled in the trunk space behind the seats like a sack.
* * *
The van stopped in a corner of the warehouse district near the coast.
Dragged across the ground, I was dumped onto the cold concrete floor of a warehouse, curled up like a caterpillar.
Bare lights cast dim shadows over broken windows and rusting machines, showing this was an abandoned factory.
Probably close to Sakaki and the others’ hideout.
There were plenty of abandoned buildings around here, and at night the streets emptied out. Perfect for shady work like this.
I hadn’t been blindfolded, so I had some idea where the van was going.
The pain had already dulled, and I had several ways to break free of the tape if I wanted.
So it wasn’t that I couldn’t escape.
It was that I chose to stay put, clear-headed now, thinking through Akuzawa’s aim.
From his talk with the punk, this had to be off the books.
That meant it wouldn’t end with just roughing me up.
If I told Yasunaga about this later, Akuzawa’s position would collapse.
Would he try to beat me into silence? Did he think I’d give in to threats?
Even someone as hot-headed as Akuzawa wouldn’t be that naïve.
So why then?
He shouldn’t hate me that much. Our relationship wasn’t good, but I had let him save face plenty of times.
If anything, I was the one holding murderous thoughts.
Did he find out about Sato Hanae?
No—that wouldn’t require secrecy. If I had meddled in his business, he could have come for me openly.
Then money?
After the deal with Yasunaga, it’s true he got hold of that cash-filled case.
But even so, it felt off for that to be the motive.
”Masuda-san, you alive? Don’t tell me you’re dead already. Damn Eiji, I told him to go easy, but he had to slug you full force.”
Akuzawa tapped my cheek lightly, pretending concern.
Of course, he didn’t care if I lived.
He brought me here to wring something out of me before finishing me.
”Uuugh…”
I groaned in fake pain.
The act was just to bait him.
I could escape any time.
The problem was what came after.
My word alone wouldn’t be trusted.
Akuzawa would never admit to kidnapping me, and by then my body would bear no wounds.
Killing him wasn’t an option either—Eiji knew I had been taken.
If Akuzawa vanished, it’d be as good as admitting I was involved.
I had even considered erasing James Masuda along with him, but it was smarter to expose him instead.
If all went well, he’d be expelled from the yakuza.
A cast-out thug? I could deal with that later.
I had no intent to kill, but I would make sure he learned his lesson the hard way.
So, while being transported, I had slipped a tiny IC recorder from the Interdimensional warehouse into the gap of the tape around my wrist.
I’d record our whole exchange before escaping.
I had bought it to plant in his room when looking for Hanae, but never used it. Funny how it came in handy now.
”Oh, still breathing? Sorry, Masuda-san. Seems the young one acted on his own. I only wanted to talk, just the two of us. Just answer a couple of my questions, and I’ll let you go.”
I slowly opened my eyes and glared at him.
A thug through and through.
He knew no way to solve things except with violence.
”Ow… what’s the meaning of this, Akuzawa-san?”
”Like I said, I didn’t plan this. I was just looking to set up a meeting about business. Some kid misunderstood and jumped the gun.”
”Is that so. Then how about you untie me first?”
”Easy, easy. After we talk. Answer me first.”
”And you think I’ll answer politely after this treatment?”
”I told you—it was a mistake. From your side, yeah, you got sucker punched. I don’t blame you for doubting my words.”
Akuzawa twisted his mouth like he was troubled.
To a stranger, he might even look genuinely regretful.
Maybe that talent for fake expressions was the only strength this man had.
Even so, what he said and what he did were completely contradictory.
Did he already forget that he was the one who tied me up with duct tape?
I glared back at him in silence as Akuzawa cheerfully insisted it was all some kid’s mistake.
”Hey, hey. We’re pals, aren’t we, Masuda-san? Don’t make that scary face. You’ll make me wet myself.”
”Do you understand what will happen to you later for doing this?”
”Such a small heart. I’m already apologizing, you know. A real man laughs off a little misunderstanding.”
”Then untie this tape first. If you do, maybe I’ll forget about this whole thing.”
”Persistent, aren’t you? I said later. Anyway—your place. It’s somewhere in this town, right?”
”And what will you do knowing that? Obviously I don’t keep Gold at home. I just bring what the organization sends me at the time of each deal.”
The moment I said that, Akuzawa twitched.
His joking mask vanished, replaced with a sharp, serious look.
So it was the Gold after all.
And maybe the Jewels too.
Either way, I had guessed as much.
The cash in the attache case was already plenty, but if he got his hands on Gold and Jewels, it would be worth many times more.
”That’s a lie. Customs are always watching for gold smuggling. If you keep sneaking small amounts over and over, the risk outweighs the profit. You must have a bigger stash hidden somewhere.”
”Hmph. And so what if I did? The amounts and timing of each Gold deal are already decided with Yasunaga-san. It has nothing to do with you, Akuzawa-san.”
”See? That’s unfair. Yasunaga’s crew keeps all the profit. Throw me a little cut too.”
”I already refused you the other day.”
”Even after a little pain?”
Akuzawa grinned, curling the corner of his mouth upward.
A man who only knew violence.
Of course, he never intended to let me leave here alive.
And then, a black aura rose around his body, the atmosphere changing in an instant.
Even without seeing that aura, there had never been any doubt—Akuzawa fully intended to kill me.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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