Total pages in book: 152
Estimated words: 154368 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 772(@200wpm)___ 617(@250wpm)___ 515(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 154368 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 772(@200wpm)___ 617(@250wpm)___ 515(@300wpm)
I grinned. "Then we unwrap it."
Reo gestured to the Claws. "We’re on the move."
They fell into formation.
Hiro gave one last look through the glass at the commander getting serviced by two women. His head was still thrown back.
Still moaning.
Still clueless.
Hiro whistled. "Poor bastard doesn't even know this is his last orgasm."
"Focus."
"I'm focused." He rolled the knife between his fingers. "Just paying my respects."
We moved deeper into the tunnels. The bass and red light followed us. And for the first time since I'd left my Tiger's arms, the knot in my chest loosened.
Toma's voice came from behind us. "That's one point for me."
Daisuke didn't even look at him. "You haven't killed anyone yet."
"I'm counting potential."
"That's not how this works."
One of the twins spoke. "We're counting the room at the end of the hall too."
"There were two in that room," the other added.
Hiro pointed his knife at them without turning around. "The contest doesn't start until we start. Stop lobbying."
I said nothing. But I heard Kaede exhale slowly through his nose—the closest he ever got to a laugh.
Hiro kept his pace next to me. "You know what, brother? I think I like this mission."
"You like every mission."
"No. Some missions are work." He glanced back one more time at the glass rooms fading behind us. "This one feels like a win."
“Don’t celebrate yet. We don’t win, until we win.”
Chapter thirty-seven
Tunnels of Orgasms
Kenji
We moved deeper into the tunnels.
The bass and red light followed us. And behind us, the Fox's commanders kept fucking, not knowing that death was on its way back up an elevator to collect reinforcements—and that when it returned, it wouldn't knock.
Hiroko pointed to the left. "This way, so we can stay away from the communal areas."
We went in that direction.
The tunnels were a maze. Hallways branching off in every direction.
More glass rooms.
More naked humping bodies.
More red light.
The bass pounded through the walls and floor, and my pulse synced with it.
We turned left again.
Then right.
Hiroko led us through the chaos with certainty, and I realized she knew these tunnels better than anyone.
And I understood why my father had chosen this place.
Without Hiroko, we'd have been wandering blind through an endless labyrinth of glass and red light, turning corners into dead ends, getting funneled into choke points we couldn't see coming.
Every wrong turn would have eaten time we didn't have, and eventually someone would spot us—a guard, a camera, a courtesan who screamed at the wrong moment.
The Depths weren't just a hiding place. They were a fortress designed by confusion.
Any army that came down here without a map would be picked apart hallway by hallway.
My father hadn't just hidden underground. He'd buried himself inside a trap that only his enemies could fall into.
The only reason we were moving with purpose right now was the woman walking in front of me.
Without her, this mission was suicide.
I watched the back of Hiroko's head as she turned another corner without hesitation.
She was the key to all of this. And my father had no idea we had her.
She stopped us at a door. “Okay. Now. . .there is no other choice but to go out into the customer sections.”
I stiffened.
“All I can do is. . .make sure we are in the places that are typically less frequented, but. . .” She sighed. “It’s been a few years since I’ve been down. Areas could have changed.”
“Don’t worry. You’ve already helped us out more than you could ever know.” I moved forward. “Get behind us, Hiroko.”
She stepped behind us, and Reo opened the door.
The difference was immediate.
The service corridors had been dim.
Quiet.
Forgotten.
Built for people who weren't supposed to be seen.
This was the opposite.
The hallway beyond was wider, the ceilings higher, the red light richer—not the flat industrial glow from before, but warm, lush, and intentional.
Designed to make people feel beautiful while they did ugly things.
The music was louder here too with the hypnotic bass layered beneath it.
And there were people.
Not behind glass walls this time.
Walking.
Talking.
Drinking.
Courtesans in silk red robes that hung open to reveal their breasts. Men in loosened black yukatas with flushed faces and glazed eyes.
No one had noticed us yet.
But they would.
We were a group of armed men in tactical gear walking through a pleasure district. We didn't belong here. Every second we were exposed, the odds of someone raising an alarm climbed.
I kept my guns low against my thighs — visible to my men, hidden from a casual glance.
The Claws did the same, weapons tucked close to their bodies.
Hiro slid his knife up his sleeve.
We moved fast.
Not running.
Running drew eyes.
But faster than anyone else in these hallways, cutting through the haze of sex and smoke like sharks through warm water.
A woman stumbled out of a doorway and nearly walked into Reo. Her robe was open and her eyes were glassy—drunk, drugged, or both.
She looked up at him, blinked, and opened her mouth.