TBCTW Chapter 11

Chapter 11 – Could’ve Been Murder

Chapter 4, Part 4

Novel Title: 獣はかくしてまぐわう (The Beasts Copulate 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 novels.space, the original site of translation. TQ*

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On the second day, they conducted interviews around the home of Toshimi Hasumi.

As a police officer, Kagura had done countless interviews, most of which depended on the authority of his police ID.

Zero, however, had a knack for making people more willing to talk. Young or old, women easily fell for Zero’s charm and effortless confidence. This even worked with men, as Zero was skilled at subtly coaxing information from them.

Ordinarily, Zero referred to himself as ‘Ore’, but during interviews, he often used ‘Boku’ depending on whom he was speaking to.

The unfamiliar gentleness of this term gave Kagura an odd feeling; he even found it endearing despite himself.

When a roguishly handsome man uses ‘Boku’ while asking for information, people are easily drawn into the unusualness of it all, compelled to help him.

“Were you really a freelance writer at some point?” Kagura asked in disbelief.

“Yes, I did a bit of that to earn pocket money when I was younger,” Zero replied.

Eventually, they were able to find a local with a deep knowledge of the neighbourhood’s affairs.

This person was a woman in her late forties who appeared refined and was a homemaker. She mentioned that her son had attended the same elementary school as Toshimi Hasumi.

Zero told her they were interviewing Toshimi Hasumi because he was a nominee for the Japan Venture Award. Upon hearing this, the woman clasped her hands in front of her and began to speak.

“Oh my, little Toshimi. He was such a quiet and gentle child. His voice was soft, but he always greeted people politely. But he wore the same clothes and shoes all the time, you know? Once, when he wore sneakers with the soles coming off, I just couldn’t bear it, so I gave him some of my son’s hand-me-downs. My son’s a year younger than Toshimi, but he’s quite big for his age.”

“So his family was in a difficult financial situation.”

Zero widened his eyes as if he were hearing this for the first time, and the woman lowered her voice.

“It’s not a nice story, but it seems they were burdened with a large debt. Toshimi’s parents passed away right after he graduated from elementary school. About a year before that, some rough-looking debt collectors started hanging around the area. I had to tell the children to avoid him, unfortunately.”

“That’s understandable. It’s a parent’s duty to protect their children.”

Hearing Zero’s sympathetic response, the woman’s eyes filled with tears.

“Yes, that’s right. And…when I think of that rumour…”

Zero leaned in closer, his intense gaze fixed on her.

“What rumour? I promise it won’t go in the article. Can you tell me?”

“Oh? Well… I’m not sure…”

After glancing around nervously, as though worried about being overheard, she leaned in close to Zero’s ear.

Kagura barely caught her whisper.

“They say Toshimi’s parents’ death, which was ruled a suicide by charcoal in their car, might have been murder.”

“Murder…? Why would people think that?”

“The debt collectors stopped coming immediately after their deaths, even though their car was found in the mountains three days later.”

“So the debt collectors somehow knew about their deaths before the discovery…”

“Exactly! So people began speculating that it was made to look like a suicide, or that they were forced into it.”

With flushed cheeks, the woman revealed her secret and then suddenly grew solemn, dabbing at her eyes.

“…But hearing that Toshimi is doing well really put my heart at ease. It’s been a weight on me for years.”

Afterward, they continued their quiet investigation in nearby establishments like old diners and souvenir shops but didn’t gather much else.

In the late afternoon, they took the Joetsu Shinkansen back to Tokyo, where Zero handed Kagura his ticket at the station.

“When we arrive at Tokyo Station, I’ll circle the car around to the Yaesu Exit rotary, and we can meet up there.”

In effect, this was the end of their short trip.

With a lingering sense of nostalgia for this time—both meaningful and somewhat wasted—Kagura passed through the ticket gate alone.

He boarded the Shinkansen, took his designated window seat, and stared idly at the people on the opposite platform.

In about two hours, they would arrive at Tokyo Station. That was back to everyday life.

Whenever he went on a trip, he was always keenly aware of its end. All enjoyable and fulfilling times inevitably condensed into the past as memories.

The Shinkansen began to glide smoothly.

The sky had already darkened to indigo, and streetlights illuminated the ground below. Reflections in the window showed the brightly lit interior of the train superimposed on the scenery outside.

A tall man appeared in the reflection, sitting down in the adjacent seat.

Kagura stared intently at that profile.

The face of the man he was so used to seeing now appeared somehow distant, like a stranger.

Just as they had sat separately on the Shinkansen ride here, they were now just two passengers riding back, sitting apart.

…No matter how intensely they’d been together the previous night, now they were strangers who just happened to be sitting side by side.

That’s why Zero didn’t look his way or speak. Kagura acted the same in return.

If they didn’t interact, this was what their relationship looked like.

It was unnatural, after all, for a criminal investigations officer and a man who led an unregistered group to be deeply connected.

A strange illusion arose, as if they really were people with no connection at all.

A chill, like a hole had opened in his stomach, washed over him. Kagura, still facing the window, clenched his hand on the seat. If he didn’t, his hand felt like it might wander on its own.

Suddenly, something lightly touched the side of his fist.

The familiar warmth seeped through… most likely the side of Zero’s fist.

They weren’t holding hands, nor pressing them together.

But even this small contact was enough.

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*Translator’s Note: The last part kinda hurts. I like reading about this kind of relationship though. It hurts good. I must be crazy. -K

*GLOSSARY: 

‘Ore’ (俺), ‘Boku’ (僕), ‘Watashi’ (私) = all of these are ‘I’ but used in different contexts or status or gender-wise.

Next update: 2025.10.20

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