TBCTW Chapter 26

Chapter 26 – Placing Bets

Chapter 11, Part 2

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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Leaning back in his chair, Kagura clasped his hands over his abdomen and tilted his chin upward.  

“I want to confirm the stakes of this bet.”  

From beneath his mask, Kiriyama’s gaze swept over Kagura as if appraising him.  

“If you lose, you’ll pay with your body.”  

Kagura had anticipated such a proposal, but hearing it said aloud still sent a wave of revulsion through him.  

However, considering the potential reward, retreating wasn’t an option.  

“I won’t mimic Renjou’s actions, nor will I allow anyone else to.”  

“Fine by me.”  

“To balance the stakes—if you lose, you’ll tell me where Toono is.”  

Kagura ensured the conditions for victory were as favourable to him as possible.  

For once, Kiriyama didn’t reply immediately.  

“That’s unbalanced.”  

“I’m an amateur. I’m already at a disadvantage.”  

After a pause to consider, Kiriyama nodded slowly.  

“Bet accepted.”  

From the eleventh floor, they descended to the seventh floor, where the casino was located.  

The underground casino was restricted to S-rank individuals or those holding A-rank accompanying them or higher invitation cards.  

Against the dim interior walls, rows of slot machines blinked with neon-coloured lights, emitting sounds designed to trigger adrenaline.  

On the floor below, roulette and baccarat tables were illuminated by spotlights, surrounded by patrons drawn to the artificial light like moths to a flame.  

Near the entrance was a bar area. Box seats and counter seats were occupied by individuals wearing Seven Lucky Gods masks, each seated at a distance from the others.  

“That’s a cryptocurrency loan broker. Their rates and fees are exorbitant,” Kiriyama remarked, gesturing to a striking woman in a Benzaiten mask seated at the counter.  

The woman, with an astonishingly perfect figure, glanced their way.  

“It’s not uncommon for customers here to burn through hundreds of millions in a single night,” Kiriyama added.  

For those people, a hundred million yen was probably the equivalent of ten thousand yen—or at most, a hundred thousand yen—for the average working person.  

Ignoring the fevered sounds of a slot machine hitting a jackpot, Kagura followed Kiriyama down the half-staircase. The noise from the slot machines faded, as if dampened by soundproofing materials.  

Kiriyama went straight to the cashier at the wall, obtained chips, and returned. He handed Kagura ten purple chips.  

“The winner will be whoever increases these chips by 3 a.m. It doesn’t matter how you do it.”  

“How much are these worth?”  

Kiriyama picked up one chip and replied, “Each is roughly worth one million yen.”  

In other words, they totaled around ten million yen. The chips felt unnaturally heavy in Kagura’s hands.  

“These are service chips from me. I won’t demand reimbursement.”  

“So, you’re fine with throwing away ten million yen?”  

“It’s not throwing it away—I’m essentially buying you.”  

Kiriyama clearly didn’t anticipate losing.  

In reality, Kagura only had a bare minimum of casino knowledge from his work in organised crime control. He had never actually played before.  

While Kiriyama immersed himself in a dice-based table game, Kagura approached a roulette table, standing among the spectators and observing how the players placed their bets. Afterward, he took a seat and decided to play himself.  

The female dealer, wearing a cat mask, spoke in a calm voice. “Place your bets.”  

Kagura cautiously placed his chips in small amounts on the betting area. After a while, the dealer spun the ball into the roulette wheel with a call.  

Finally, Kagura placed a chip across numbers 10 and 11 in black.  

“No more bets,” the dealer announced, her fingers adorned with shimmering blue nails sweeping across the betting area to close it.  

Even though he considered this a test run, Kagura couldn’t help but tense up.  

The ball initially dropped into the red 9 but bounced and landed on 10. His choice to split the bet between 10 and 11 had been correct.  

Kagura’s subsequent performance was neither spectacularly successful nor disastrous—reasonable for a beginner. But when he glanced over at Kiriyama, he saw a mountain of chips piled in front of him. A sinking feeling gripped Kagura as he realised just how reckless this gamble was.  

It wasn’t until he lost a significant amount while cycling through blackjack and mini-baccarat tables that he noticed how destructive impatience could be in gambling. When he checked the time, it was already well past 1 a.m.  

He needed to cool down.  

Kagura headed to the restroom, intending to step into a stall, but someone pushed him from behind.  

The man who entered the black-tiled stall with him wore a distinctive Guy Fawkes mask, along with a bow tie and cummerbund, like a casino dealer.  

Kagura recalled seeing this masked man dealing at one of the baccarat tables earlier.  

“What do you want?” Kagura asked firmly.  

The man slightly shifted his mask, revealing his mouth. Kagura recognized the piercing in his lower lip. His slim, boyish physique also matched.  

“…Haiiro?”  

When Kagura whispered the name, the man nodded.  

Haiiro grabbed Kagura’s arm and pushed him down to sit on the closed toilet seat. Leaning against the wall, Haiiro bent down and whispered into Kagura’s ear.  

“You’re here with Kiriyama, right?”  

Haiiro must have heard the situation from Zero. Denying it would be pointless.  

“That’s right.”  

“I should tattle on you to Zero,” Haiiro teased before continuing. “You’re carrying a hefty amount of chips. What’s up with that?”  

“Kiriyama gave them to me—he proposed a bet. If I win, I’ll learn Toono’s location.”  

The Guy Fawkes mask tilted toward Kagura in surprise. Through the eyeholes, pale grey eyes stared intently.  

“That’s amazing.”  

“My chances of winning are practically zero. And there’s less than two hours left,” Kagura replied bitterly. He pulled the remaining chips out of his jacket pocket and spread them on his palm.  

Out of the initial ten million yen’s worth, only about three million yen remained.  

In just about four hours, over six million yen had melted away. The thought sent a chill down Kagura’s spine.  

“If you win, you’ll learn Toono’s location, right?”  

When Kagura nodded to confirm, Haiiro pointed to himself with his thumb.  

“Stick to my table for the rest of the time. I’ll use every trick in the book to make you win.”  

Saying this, Haiiro proceeded to teach Kagura a series of signals.  

“By ‘tricks,’ you mean cheating, right? Are you sure this is safe?”  

Before stepping out of the restroom stall, Kagura asked, worried that Haiiro’s life would be in danger if they were caught. Haiiro gave a dismissive wave. Between his index and middle fingers, a Joker card appeared as if it had been there all along.  

“Let me show you the divine skills of this genius dealer.”  

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*Translator’s Note: 10 million yen is roughly around 68000 USD. Kiriyama would buy that booty for that much. Wow. -K

Next update: 2025.11.05

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