Chapter 34:

THE “CRIME LORD” GOES TO JAIL AND THE POLICE CHIEF’S CALCULATIONS

My Rival Is a Perfect Actress (And I’m Faking It Too)

After “conquering” the fish market without shedding a single drop of sweat—thanks entirely to the police force’s fear of him—Ren Takeda’s ambitions began swelling like an overinflated balloon.
He no longer wished to stop at a tiny district or a harbor that smelled of fish.
He wanted to become the Emperor of the Underworld for the entire region.
Thus, the first stones were laid for a criminal empire built in true Takeda fashion:
With maximum style.

---
THE CAMPAIGN OF CONQUEST AND FIREWORK EFFECTS
Early the next morning, one of his underlings burst into the villa, dropped to his knees before Ren—who was calmly sipping tea despite his still-swollen face—and cried out:
“Boss!”
“To the north of town, there’s a local kingpin controlling the amusement district and entertainment spots!”
“He says he refuses to submit to you!”

---
Ren set down his teacup and smirked coldly.
He rose, draped a black suit jacket over his shoulders, and radiated overwhelming presence.
“Move.”
“It is time to enlighten them on what the new order looks like.”

---
Yet reality proved deeply disappointing for someone who craved drama as much as Ren did.
The moment the northern boss saw Ren approaching with forty aggressive-looking followers, he immediately fell to his knees and surrendered every inch of territory.
After all, he had already heard the rumors.
And he had witnessed the police chief practically begging to release Ren the day before.
There was no battle.
No bloodshed.
No resistance.
Just immediate surrender.

---
But Ren could not allow a transfer of power ceremony to be so dull.
He selected the rival boss’s most beautiful possession:
A bright red convertible sports car.
He sat in the driver’s seat with one foot resting on the dashboard.
Then he pulled two polished steel marbles from his pocket and slowly rolled them in one hand, letting them click together with mysterious rhythm.
“Film this.”
“Low angle from below.”
He ordered an underling holding a camera.

---
Then he began speaking in a gravelly, philosophical voice:
“This world…”
“Is where the big fish devour the small.”
“The weak are born only to be oppressed.”
“Power is the only thing that allows us to survive in this darkness.”
“I have not come to rule.”
“I have come to restore the law of nature.”

---
At that exact moment—
BOOM!
Fireworks exploded brilliantly across the daytime sky.
(Which Ren had secretly hired in advance for 5,000 Sun Coins.)
Drones circled overhead, capturing cinematic footage of Ren and his forty black-clad followers standing behind him with folded arms.
The scene looked less like a local takeover and more like a top-tier Hollywood action film.

---
A MOTHER’S PATIENCE RUNS OUT
Back in the city center, Takeda Shizuka sat drinking tea with Akane’s mother.
On the tablet before them played the video:
“Leader of the Underworld.”
Complete with fireworks.
Complete with drones.
Complete with absurd confidence.

---
Akane’s mother covered her mouth, barely suppressing laughter.
“Shizuka…”
“Your son really does have leadership potential.”
“Those drone effects must have cost a fortune.”

---
A freezing aura of killing intent spread through the room.
Shizuka felt as if her dignity had been thrown into a garbage bin.
She had promised Soujirou she would not interfere.
But this level of theatrical nonsense had crossed the tolerance limit of a powerful mother.
She immediately picked up the phone and called the suburban police chief.
“Arrest him.”
“Lock him up for two or three days.”
“No need for a reason.”
“I simply want him out of my sight for a while.”

---
A VACATION INSIDE PRISON
For the second time that week, Ren Takeda was escorted into custody.
But this time, his posture was entirely different.
He walked into the jail cell as though entering a VIP suite at a five-star hotel.
The surrounding officers trembled so badly none dared meet his eyes.
When he was hungry, delicious meals arrived at his door.
When he was thirsty, premium bottled mineral water was delivered immediately.
Ren reclined in the cell with one leg crossed over the other, hands behind his head, thinking:
“The food here isn’t bad.”
“Maybe in the future, whenever I’m hungry or too lazy to cook…”
“I should start a small riot and come back.”
“I get the reputation of a dangerous criminal under arrest…”
“And save money on meat.”

---
THE OLD FOX MAKES A PLAN
Upstairs in his office, the police chief wiped sweat from his forehead while answering another call from Shizuka.
“Yes… yes, Madam.”
“Young Master is eating normally.”
“I understand.”
“I will keep him exactly two days.”
“I guarantee not a single hair on his head will be harmed.”
“Yes, please rest assured.”

---
After hanging up, he collapsed into his chair.
Then suddenly—
His eyes lit up with cunning.
He looked at Ren’s file.
Then at a photograph of his own son, a low-ranking police officer stationed in some rural province.
A “brilliant” idea emerged.
“Heh heh…”
“If I flatter this young master…”
“If I turn him into my son’s benefactor—or even a friend…”
“Wouldn’t my family’s future soar like a kite in the wind?”
“The name Ren Takeda…”
“Is a golden ticket.”

---
The old police chief began chuckling triumphantly.
Meanwhile, downstairs in the holding cell, Ren continued enjoying his luxurious prison dinner, completely unaware that he had become a chess piece in the career plans of a subordinate old fox.

---
As for Akane—
Still managing the fish market, she could only sigh when she heard Ren had gone back to the station.
“That idiot…”
“He definitely did something that irritated his mother again.”

THE “PARASITE” STRATEGY AND THE PIECES ON THE BANQUET TABLE

While Ren Takeda spent two leisurely days “vacationing” in his VIP jail cell—with meals delivered and drinks poured for him—a different battle was unfolding upstairs in the police station.

Silent.

Dramatic.

And far more calculating.

The old police chief, armed with the instincts of a man who had crawled through decades of bureaucracy, understood one thing clearly:

This was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to change his family’s destiny.

---

THE ART OF BORROWING A TIGER’S SHADOW

The chief was not foolish enough to approach Ren directly with flattery.

He knew perfectly well that standing too close to a tiger like the Takeda heir could get one’s face ripped off at any moment.

But he was a master of something else:

Borrowing the tiger’s prestige.

---

THE CRAFT OF EDITING AND THE RUMOR OF POWER

He launched a dirty but highly effective media campaign.

Using surveillance footage from the station, he carefully edited clips showing himself speaking on the phone with Takeda family servants and butlers—people before whom he normally bowed and scraped.

Through clever camera angles and theatrical framing, routine conversations in which he merely received instructions were transformed into intimate exchanges between old allies.

Soon, whispers spread quietly through inter-prefectural police circles:

“The suburban police chief is a discreet confidant of the Takeda family.”

“Soujirou-sama personally entrusted him with protecting the young master in secret.”

---

To strengthen the illusion, the chief invited officers from larger city departments to lavish dinners at the most expensive restaurants he could afford—

Paid entirely with the “black fund” he had accumulated over a lifetime.

Once they were drunk enough, he casually revealed photos of Ren comfortably “staying” at his station.

He sighed theatrically and said:

“Gentlemen…”

“If there were not deep trust and old bonds between us…”

“Would that arrogant young master remain quietly in my tiny station for two full days without a single complaint?”

---

The city officers exchanged nervous glances.

Sweat formed on their brows.

They admired him.

They feared him.

And above all—

They began to believe this old man possessed a direct line to the highest house in the land.

---

A LIGHTNING-FAST PROMOTION PLAN FOR HIS SON

His real objective was not his own aging police chief’s chair.

He knew his time was nearly over.

But his son—

A low-ranking policeman toiling in some provincial outpost—

Still had an entire future ahead of him.

Using the label of being “close to the Takeda family,” the old chief began pressuring the son’s superiors.

He would casually remark:

“My boy is still young, but he has my temperament.”

“The Soujirou household seems rather fond of him.”

“I had planned to bring him here to replace me after retirement…”

“But the Takeda butler hinted they may prefer placing him in a higher position to assist matters in the capital…”

---

That single vague sentence was enough to terrify upper management.

Immediately, the police commissioner overseeing his son promised that a meaningful post would be waiting for the young man upon retirement transition.

More than that—

They began clearing obstacles.

They started elevating the son through middle ranks, preparing him for a meteoric rise into the central police apparatus.

---

THE TOAST OF A VICTOR

The old chief sat alone in his office, sipping expensive imported liquor.

His eyes gleamed with triumph.

He laughed to himself.

“Ren Takeda…”

“Keep showing off.”

“Keep causing chaos.”

“The more trouble you make…”

“The stronger my ‘special relationship’ with you appears.”

“You are the golden ticket that will carry my son to the summit of power.”

---

THE TERROR OF INFLUENCE-BASED JUSTICE

In that remote town, justice had been bent into something almost absurd.

No one cared how Ren had incited a riot.

No one questioned why a gang leader received privileged treatment in jail.

The only concern among officials was this:

How to please the man believed to be guarding the gate to House Takeda.

---

The old police chief had succeeded in transforming Ren’s “mistake” into a ladder for his family’s advancement.

He did not care whether Ren was right or wrong.

He only cared that Ren was a Takeda.

And in politics, the man closest to the sun shines brightest—

Even if the light is borrowed.

---

REN’S UNEASE

On the second night in jail, Ren lay staring at the ceiling and muttered:

“Why does that old police chief keep looking at me with such tenderness today?”

“It’s like he’s staring at a pile of gold.”

“Disgusting.”

---

He had no idea that while he sulked over being imprisoned by his mother, his name had already helped some minor policeman hundreds of kilometers away prepare for a promotion into the clouds.

Such was the adult world of power:

Dirty.

Practical.

And shameless.

The old police chief was the perfect parasite feeding on the immense shadow of the Takeda family.

---

AKANE’S VERDICT

When Akane heard rumors of the chief’s secret banquets with government officials, she merely curled one corner of her mouth.

“Another fool trying to climb upward by gripping the hem of House Takeda.”

“But he forgets something.”

“A dragon may lend you its majesty…”

“But with one breath, it may also burn you to ash if your greed grows too large.”