Dragon Raja 3; Chapter 86: Paradise (10)

Dragon Raja 3

The truth came to light when an old friend from Nakamura’s childhood saw his wife in Tokyo, holding hands with the same young man and entering a love hotel. The next news was that Nakamura’s investment project had collapsed, with the operators absconding with the funds—investors got nothing back. As Nakamura was confronting his wife about her relationship with the young man, a financial institution began pressing him to repay the loan, threatening to seize his land. Only then did Nakamura realize that the financial institution had ties to the underworld—their primary business was loan-sharking. His dream shattered. The day his wife packed up to leave, Nakamura received a court-issued divorce notice. He pleaded with her to consider their child, but she smiled mockingly and said, “Are you sure the child is yours?”

The day the financial institution came to claim the land, Nakamura’s mother had a heart attack. As the ambulance passed by the family grave, the men blew up the plastic factory that had been in the family for generations.

Nakamura knelt before his mother’s spirit for three days, then went to the bank to withdraw the money his mother had saved for him to open a small shop. He took that last seven million yen to Elysium House. He wasn’t a good gambler, but when people are pushed to the edge, they bet everything on that last hope.

“That’s quite a wish,” Sakurai Kogure said in the VIP room after hearing his story. “Even with your good luck today, twelve hundred million yen might not be enough.”

“How much more? I can go back and keep gambling!” Nakamura was ready to kneel and beg.

Sakurai Kogure held Nakamura’s hand, caressing the spot where his ring had left a mark on his left ring finger. “Add this finger, and it’ll be enough.”

Nakamura shivered violently, yet he didn’t pull his hand back. “They’re from the underworld, and so are you… Are you all just trying to trap me?”

“Not all underworld groups are the same,” Sakurai Kogure smiled softly. “Compared to the high-and-mighty Yamata no Orochi, who control the laws of the underworld, perhaps we ‘ghosts’ are more trustworthy.” She turned and walked out, leaving a short knife on the table.

If there was no one left in this world to trust, most people would choose to trust a ghost, right? Nakamura thought.

Sakurai Kogure didn’t lead him back to the VIP room, where the walls were inlaid with red crystal glass, but instead took him out a discreet exit, down the whitewashed stairwell.

Nakamura had never imagined that the casino would have such a deep basement. Apart from the sound of his and Kogure’s footsteps, there was no other noise. Giant exhaust fans slowly rotated, blowing out a stifling warm breeze. If it weren’t for Kogure holding his hand the whole time, keeping him warm, Nakamura wasn’t sure if he would’ve had the courage to reach the very bottom. The path hidden beneath Elysium House felt like it led straight to the underworld itself.

“Miss Sakurai, is this Mr. Nakamura?” A black-clad man finally appeared at the stairway’s end.

In this almost pitch-black place, the man wore dark sunglasses. Nakamura nervously looked at him, seeing an eerie golden gleam from behind the lenses… for some reason, it looked like the eyes of a cold-blooded animal.

“Room B431. Mr. Nakamura’s wish is already there. Please follow me.” The man turned, leading Nakamura and Sakurai Kogure to a black iron door, swiping a card to unlock it.

The room was lined with metal-plated walls. Being underground, there were naturally no windows, only small air vents. There wasn’t much inside—four people sat on four chairs, their arms tied behind them, burlap sacks covering their heads. They shivered, making muffled groaning sounds. The man closed the iron door behind him and took out a prepared folder.

He pulled off the first burlap sack and glanced at the photo in the folder. “Fujita Jutarou, president of the finance company that provided your mortgage loan, a senior member of the Triad. Please confirm.”

“It’s him,” Nakamura croaked.

The man drew out a silenced pistol, pressed it against Fujita Jutarou’s forehead, and with a muted pop, the body slumped backward with the chair.

“Yamaguchi Satoshi, the one who orchestrated the real estate project you invested in. He colluded with your friend, Akamatsu Hidekata. Yamaguchi started the project, and Akamatsu convinced investors to join him. Later, Yamaguchi fled with the funds to an East African country that has no extradition treaty with Japan. Akamatsu Hidekata appeared to be a victim as well, but after Yamaguchi laundered the money, he transferred it to Akamatsu. Since there was no extradition treaty, we had to bring him back from Africa ourselves. There were some accidents along the way, so the ‘goods’ are slightly damaged. Please excuse this, dear guest.” The man referred to Yamaguchi’s ears, which had been severed, with no proper bandaging—just a yellow powder to stop the bleeding.

“Please confirm.” The man pointed the gun at Yamaguchi’s forehead.

Nakamura nodded, and Yamaguchi’s head snapped back as the bullet hit, blood splattering on the ceiling.

“Akamatsu Hidekata, your wife’s friend. He claimed to be from a prominent family, but in reality, he was an underground fighter, moonlighting as an escort for wealthy women. He was your wife’s lover and the mastermind behind the plot to scam you of your assets. By the way, the child your wife was carrying has been forcibly delivered as per your request. DNA tests confirm that it’s indeed Akamatsu Hidekata’s.” The man continued, “Please confirm.”

Nakamura gazed at the younger, more handsome man, tears streaming down his face, even as his expression twisted like a demon’s.

“As for your wife, we’ve brought her here as promised. Since you didn’t insist on us dealing with her, we’ll leave her to you.” The man pointed to the trembling figure in the last chair. Though her face was covered by the burlap sack, the alluring body beneath her white dress indicated that she was indeed an extraordinary beauty.

“If you don’t want her, rest assured, cleaning up afterward is also part of our service, free of charge. If you still have feelings for her, we’ve reserved our best VIP suite for you upstairs. You can stay there with her as long as you like, until she comes to her senses and submits to you—this is also free.” Sakurai Kogure opened a red wooden box and took out the short knife Nakamura recognized. Three weeks ago, he had used this very knife to sever his ring finger, leaving it as part of the price at Elysium House.