The room went completely silent. This was no longer just Monopoly; this had transformed into something else entirely. A game within a game. A test. A challenge.
The weight of what I was doing settled over the table like a blanket. This wasn't about properties or money anymore. This was about information, leverage, and the subtle warfare of social manipulation.
Natalia leaned in close to whisper urgently in Akari's ear, her purple eyes never leaving mine. Even from across the table, I could hear the sharp warning in her voice. "Don't do it. It's a trap. He always has an angle."
But Akari was already smiling, her eyes sparkling with the unmistakable gleam of someone who not only enjoyed playing with fire but actively sought it out for entertainment. The kind of person who saw a trap and walked into it anyway just to see what would happen.
"Deal," she said, extending her hand across the table.
