Saotome saw Ayanokoji open his wallet, revealing thick stacks of banknotes, each one a ten-thousand-yen bill. Her breathing became rapid.
How enviable. Is this what a rich second-generation is like...? If she had this money too, she wouldn't have been forced into such a predicament.
"Ayanokoji, this money has interest, right?"
Saotome really wanted the money, but she couldn't accept Ayanokoji's kindness for free. "You can't just lend me money so casually. I won't feel at ease without interest."
Before Ayanokoji could speak, Hanatemari, who was beside them, suddenly pulled out a stack of new bills from her pocket, with a fawning smile on her face: "Meari, I have 500,000 here. I can give you this money, and I don't want any interest..."
"Shut up!" Saotome finally erupted, shouting angrily at Hanatemari, "If you have money, why do you insist on being livestock? Wouldn't it be better to just pay to redeem yourself?!"
...Meari, I'm not like you.
Hanatemari lowered her head, making her expression unreadable. She said softly, "I'm very weak. Even if this money can temporarily free me from being livestock, if I can't earn money through gambling, I will eventually become livestock again. This money is my last insurance."
Saotome Meari looked at her former elementary school classmate in disbelief.
In her impression, Hanatemari had always been kind to people, with a smile always on her face, as if she would never be sad. What on earth had she encountered at this school...? To show such a desolate expression, as if she had lost all hope.
"Since this is your insurance, why are you taking it out for me?" Saotome turned her face away, not wanting to look at her expression.
"Because... I believe in Meari. Meari will definitely win." She raised her head, a smile spreading directly across her face, a little different from usual, but still looking foolish.
"..." Saotome looked at Hanatemari, then at Ayanokoji, and sighed.
"I will gamble. Ayanokoji, lend me this money for now. I will win back the money I lost, and then, excluding the amount I lost, half of the winnings will be your interest."
Saotome spoke in an undeniable tone, without saying how much money she needed to borrow, and directly took the wallet from Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's hand.
She didn't take the money from Hanatemari's hand, but instead held her hand and pushed the money back to her chest.
"Keep this money for yourself. If I fail, at least you'll be able to relax a bit with this money."
"Meari..." Hanatemari seemed touched, her face instantly brightening, looking excitedly at Saotome Meari.
Saotome couldn't stand being looked at with such a moved gaze. She let out a soft snort and strode towards her classroom.
Ayanokoji, as the "creditor," naturally followed her. Seeing them both leave, Hanatemari also hurried to catch up.
Although it was still class time, Ayanokoji's visit didn't attract anyone's attention. He boldly walked into the casino in Class 1.
"Saotome? You're back? I thought you had already left school and gone home to cry, hahahaha...!"
As soon as Ayanokoji stepped through the door, he heard this villain-like three-stage laugh, which came from a girl sitting at the central gambling table in the casino.
She must be Aiura Kokoro.
Saotome Meari's face was dark as she said nothing, walking directly to her side, grabbing a handful of money from her wallet, and slapping it onto the gambling table with a loud thud!
"Could it be that you've come to pay me back?" Aiura Kokoro glanced at Saotome, a malicious smile appearing on her face. "How did you get this money? It couldn't be that..."
Saotome interrupted her, "Don't worry about where I borrowed the money from. I'm not here to pay you back, I'm here to gamble with you."
Saotome's words stunned Aiura Kokoro. A moment later, she burst into a series of laughs: "Hahahahaha... Everyone, did you hear that? This woman is such an idiot! She actually wants to gamble with me again, hahahaha...!"
Saotome approached Aiura Kokoro, her gloomy expression stopping Aiura Kokoro's laughter abruptly.
"I ask you, do you still want to gamble?" Saotome asked again.
Although Aiura Kokoro was startled for a moment, a smile quickly reappeared on her face: "Of course I want to gamble! I like idiots like you the most, because you always bring me money!"
Aiura Kokoro pushed Saotome away, jumped down from the gambling table, and sat on one of the chairs, provoking, "Okay, let's gamble! The rules are still the same as before, no problem?"
Saotome sat on the other side, nodding silently.
"What game are they playing?" Ayanokoji asked Hanatemari Kazura, who had been cowering behind him since they entered the casino, afraid of being seen.
"They are playing a game called [Short-Term Tycoon], a game created by Student Council President Kirari Momobami."
Hanatemari introduced softly, "In the game, each round, one person draws five cards. The order from largest to smallest is Joker, 2, A, K down to 3. One card is played each time, and whoever plays all their cards first wins.
The winner of each round is called the Tycoon, and the loser is called the Pauper. In the second round, the Tycoon can exchange their smallest hand card for the Pauper's largest hand card. To compensate the Pauper, when the Pauper wins, they receive double the betting money."
"In this school, there's also a special rule: although 3 is the smallest card, it can uniquely beat K."
"Can one set their own game rules in this academy?" Ayanokoji mused.
"As long as the rules are recognized by both parties, a gamble can be formed. Many people in the academy create their own games."
As an old-timer who had been at this school for three years, Hanatemari Kazura was very familiar with the school's rules.
"I see..." Ayanokoji mused. No wonder when he was playing against Kuroki, Kuroki asked him if he wanted to play a self-created game.
Devising a rule beneficial to oneself to form a new gamble is also a way to increase one's winning rate.
Ayanokoji looked at Aiura Kokoro. She and Saotome Meari had already started gambling, the stakes still being ten thousand yen per game.
Aiura Kokoro had long nails with nail polish. Her card-holding posture seemed less skilled than Saotome's, and she didn't look like a gambling expert.
If she were good at the game, she would, like Kuroki, generously let Saotome choose what game to play, instead of asking Saotome again to continue this game.
In other words, there was a reason why she chose this game. When she played this game, she was sure she would have a higher winning rate.
So, what could it be?
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