As soon as Ayanokoji escaped from the casino, he saw a petite blonde girl appear from the end of the corridor not far away, running quickly down the hallway.
As she ran, the hood behind her bounced up and down, making her look like a leaping rabbit.
Ayanokoji angled his body, making way for the girl to pass, but when she reached him, she suddenly slammed on the brakes and stopped in front of him.
The other party was very petite, and her orange rabbit hoodie covered a large part of her body. She wore black and white striped over-the-knee socks on her lower half, an outfit that made her look like a little girl who had just entered junior high.
Such an outfit was rare at Hyakkaou Private Academy, where almost everyone wore school uniforms, and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka couldn't help but take a second look.
Could it be that she was a girl from the middle school division?
"It smells so good… What are you eating?" The girl looked up at Ayanokoji, curiously eyeing the potato chips in his hand.
"Potato chips, do you want some?"
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was not a stingy person and didn't mind letting others eat his food, especially a girl as endearing as a rabbit.
Ayanokoji was currently in the mood of feeding a small animal.
"Really? Thank you!"
The girl showed no caution at all, seemingly not even considering that there might be something wrong with a stranger's food. She took the potato chips from Ayanokoji's hand, grabbed a handful, and started eating.
Crunching sounds echoed from her mouth, and in a moment, her eyes instantly lit up. She seemed to have tasted the deliciousness of the food and felt the special effect it contained, so she sped up her eating.
In less than a minute, a bag of potato chips was already eaten by her, without even leaving a single crumb for Ayanokoji, and she still seemed to want more.
"Is there any more?" She blinked and looked up at Ayanokoji.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka spread his hands, helplessly saying, "There are no more potato chips, but do you want a lollipop?"
Although his system mailbox still contained similar puffed snacks, he couldn't just conjure a bag of potato chips out of thin air like a magic trick, could he?
This child would definitely ask a lot of questions, but a small snack like a lollipop wouldn't be a problem.
"Yes, yes, how much?"
The girl quickly nodded, not intending to freeload, and directly pulled out a 10,000 yen bill from her pocket and handed it to Ayanokoji.
"No matter where you buy it, a single lollipop couldn't possibly be that expensive." Ayanokoji laughed wryly, didn't take the money, and materialized an [N] grade lollipop from his pocket, handing it to the little girl.
"This is on me."
The other party put the lollipop in her mouth, a satisfied expression on her face: "Although the taste isn't as good as the potato chips just now, it's not bad… What's your name? You're quite sensible."
She looked Ayanokoji up and down: "I haven't seen you before. Are you a new transfer student?"
"That's right, my name is Ayanokoji Kiyotaka. And you, little one?"
"You call me little one? Don't you know who I am?" The girl looked at Ayanokoji with surprised eyes, seemingly not expecting that she would ever be called "little one."
"What's wrong? Are you the Student Council President?" Ayanokoji Kiyotaka teased.
"Although I'm not the President, I am…"
Just as the girl was about to reveal her identity, she suddenly slapped her forehead and exclaimed, "Oh no, I almost forgot to be a referee! That new student named Saotome is going to gamble with Sachiko, and I can't miss such a good show!"
She stopped talking to Ayanokoji and started running again, heading towards the stairs at the other end of the corridor.
Saotome?
Ayanokoji had come to the Club Building to find Saotome, and unexpectedly heard Meari's name from the girl. He had intended to leave, but hearing this, he couldn't stand by and watch, so he subconsciously followed the girl and started running.
Although the girl was petite, her speed was not slow; like a nimble rabbit, the hood on her back bounced up and down with her running.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had been exercising ever since he was discharged from the hospital five years ago, and even so, it took some effort to keep up with her.
"Ayanokoji? Why are you following along too?" The girl still had a lollipop in her mouth. She glanced at Ayanokoji, who was running beside her, and asked indistinctly.
"I know that girl named Meari." Ayanokoji Kiyotaka asked quickly while running, "Who is Meari gambling with now?"
"I'm not quite sure, it seems she's gambling with Sachiko for the ownership of a casino. Alright, don't ask any more questions, if we go too slow, the gamble might be over!"
The girl said, quickening her pace, and Ayanokoji also suppressed the questions in his heart, continuing to follow the girl towards their destination.
The place Ayanokoji followed the girl to was the school's second library in the Club Building, with a "Literary Club" sign hanging on the door.
"I remember… this casino should be the least known casino."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had a good memory. Although the club flyer Kuroki Ya gave him was taken by Meari, he still had some impression of the casinos' popularity rankings.
He remembered that this casino, operating under the name of the Literary Club, wasn't unpopular because of overly exaggerated cheating, but because its operator was just a poor student.
Although she took over this casino, she stipulated that the stake for each gamble was 1,000 yen, and even if one raised the bet, the maximum limit was only 30,000 yen.
In this aristocratic school, such small-scale gambling simply didn't arouse people's interest in gambling, which was why it was deserted.
Why would Saotome Meari come here? If she wanted to make money, even if she didn't find a popular casino, she shouldn't have chosen such a small casino with 1,000 yen per game.
Even if she could keep winning, how long would it take to save up money? It felt like it wouldn't even be as much as working a part-time job.
With a belly full of questions, Ayanokoji followed the rabbit girl into the second library.
This room had no gambling equipment, completely lacking the atmosphere of a casino.
Just like its name, "Library," this room had bookshelves stacked with books on both sides, and books were scattered everywhere in the room; only a long table in the very center, covered with a green tablecloth, hinted at a casino.
This rarely visited room was, today, uncommonly hosting several guests.
At this moment, Saotome Meari was sitting on one side of this gambling table, with Hanatemari Kazura nervously watching her from behind, and across from her was a short-haired girl with glasses, also looking tense.
Standing in the middle of the gambling table was a girl with messy, light red hair and an indifferent expression; she held dice in her hand, seemingly acting as the Dealer.
Like Hanatemari Kazura, she had a "Stray Cat" tag hanging from her chest.
Most strikingly, she wore a pet collar around her neck, as if she were truly a domesticated livestock.
A slender silver chain was attached to the collar around her neck, and behind her stood a tall woman with beautiful, long white hair.
She held the other end of the iron chain in her hand.
She was currently sitting atop a desk, legs crossed, her right leg, clad in black pantyhose, gracefully resting over the other. A faint, almost imperceptible smile played on her full, peach-colored lips, and she watched everyone in the room with a condescending gaze from her beast-like, crimson vertical pupils.
At this moment, everyone in the room looked up, their gazes fixed on the two intruders.
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