You thought I was dead you dumb fucks?! Behold, I'm alive and not doing well!
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Kiyotaka POV
As one of my favorite author in the literature world once said in his debut work:
"Irrationality, in a sense, is the same as stupidity, yet not. In that same reason, humans tends to do things without thoroughly thinking about the consequence, yet acts upon their own insticts."
( I thought of this. I know it's a bad quote. Can you blame me? I'm no wise man. )
Human beings are the only creatures in this world who isn't only granted the capability of thinking, but making decisions based upon their own will and freedom as well.
We are granted permission to think as we please. And of course, we can also do whatever we want, but some things, as per the rules of the society dictates, have consequences when done.
Nevertheless, some people, despite knowing this facts, still do it without thinking rationally. They have their own reasons for this, of course, but personal reasons are not accepted in a place where the sake of the humans as a whole is more important than individual values.
Anyways, it was because of 'irrationality' that bring me to this decision.
No, if I were to be honest, it's because of my own personal preference that made me chose this kind of approach.
Will it benefit me? Yes. But not immediately.
Will it benefit her? Yes. But not immediately.
Much like how things usually—No, always works, we can only gain the things we desire by doing something connected about it, and to patiently wait after that.
After all, maturity takes a lot of time. It's not something that you'll realize today and it'll magically immediately change your mindset after that.
I would only act as a bridge for her.
I will make her realize her own immaturity...
—and she herself will change in a way that will benefit the both of us.
~ ~ ~ ~
The game finally ended in favor of Nishinotouin, earning her a total of 310 million yen. Quite a large amount for a petty game, if I may say. Yumeko would probably have a hard time paying this amount of debt, but it's not totally impossible.
But for the mean time, her fate is temporarily sealed with Kirari as her master, while she will be her pet. I would love to see how things would play out. After all, this may further increase my knowledge about the pet system here at Hyakkaou.
At first, after seeing Suzui's pet tag, I already chose him as my sort of a study material. Unfortunately, he has been relinquished from her pochi title with the help of Yumeko. So using him as my test subject won't happen anymore.
But all things ended up favorable for me, so no harm has been done in my plans.... for now.
All things considered, I concluded that starting my plan today is the best move to make.
The moment the clock hit 5:00pm, we started to make our leave as clubs are supposed to end their activities and close their respective classrooms by this time.
Hands in my pocket, I was following behind Yumeko and Suzui by the stairs while listening to their conversation. I don't know where they're going as Yumeko was leading the way.
I have an idea on where exactly though, but I can't be too sure.
"310 million yen... What will you do?" Suzui's intention was as clear as day, he was worried. "D-Do you have an inheritance or something...?"
Yumeko kept walking without returning not even a glance. She kept her posture straight while holding her bag with both of her hands.
She stopped walking in front of an ordinary classroom, I think it was one the rooms of the first years, nothing special.
She opened the sliding door, walked in as we followed foot.
Looks like my hunch is correct
"Y-Yumeko...?" Suzui called to the still silent Yumeko, confused.
She finally spoke up after minute of continuous silence.
"This room is directly below the Cha-do room. An ordinary classroom, nothing strange about it."
"...?"
Suzui seems to be still at lost. I patted his shoulder, trying to tell him to just listen.
"What you call a "Badger" is an old type of trickery for Chouhan-bokuchi." She started explaining. "First, a small hole is opened in the floor. Above that, a game of Chouhan-bokuchi goes on, but because it is covered in white cloth, the hole is not visible at a glance."
Putting a cloth or anything to hide the hole is an outmost importance to cover the trickery. And besides, in a normal Chouhan-bokuchi, the cloth will also serve as a line for the dealer and the player.
"Next, there's a space in Japanese houses' floors, yes? A trickster hides there in the space."
In a traditional Japanese house and some old inns with wooden foundations, you can see a space between the foundation and the floor, while the building itself is being supported by beams beneath it.
The space is enough for a person to hide underneath it, and sometimes, some buildings even cover this space to avoid unnecessary problems. This works in favor of the trickery.
"The trickster checks the number on the die by the light of a candle through the white cloth, and depending on the desired outcome, they stab a needle through the cloth to move the dice. This way, the outcome will be beneficial to the bookmaker of the game."
Using this trick is something you must expect on a game of Chouhan-bokuchi, after all, no one will play fair when money is on the line. But not anyone can play the role of the badger, after all, problems and incidents may arise if the trickster is a beginner.
Some may say that, just because there's a Badger means the game will always end up favoring the bookmaker.
It's possible. After all, when adding together the opposite sides of a usual cubical dice, the sum is always seven. So I'm pretty sure, or much less guaranteed that being a badger is by no means an easy task.
"Tricksters of the past worked with much simpler thoughts and slow pace." Yumeko formed a smile, tilting her head to the side as to look at us.
Looks like Suzui, who's been silent this whole time while listening to Yumeko's revelation of the situation, still has something on his mind.
"Ahh... speaking of which, I feel like I've heard about something, but that?"
"Fufu... this is beyond my wildest imagination. This school- No, the student council president..." Yumeko lowered her head and kept silent for a second. I wonder what kind of expression she is making.
"...It's most possible that the president did the same thing with the magnets. The sword that had fallen into slot 24 was 'repelled' by an opposite magnet."
The possibility of such scenario is definitely high. After all, there's no other way for the sword to change places but to use the opposite side of a magnet with the same opposite force.
"Nishinotouin-san didn't know, by the looks of it. And so, a single sword falling somewhere else can be called off as pure luck."
Chances of the outcome being sheer luck is also not totally out of the table. After all, gambling is still all about trickery, underhanded tactics and luck. So removing this criteria is not an option.
However, in her argument, a loophole still exist.
No— it was meant to exist. And she's fully aware by it.
"...No, not that. But that only works because Japanese houses have space beneath the floor, right?" Suzui surprisingly caught up with the argument, and stated a very obvious loophole on Yumeko's statement. "This classroom is right under the Cha-do room, so that would have been..."
That's not possible.
How can such a thing happen anyway?
I'm sure Suzui has been thinking of this things. Not only the club room is on the second floor, but a regular, used classroom is right underneath it. Also, considering the gap between the floors, I'm sure Suzui was sure of himself that it's definitely not possible for a person to fit inside, but only wires and cables for the bulbs and other electronic appliances to work.
However, that's the very reason why I think Suzui is still too immature for this...
"If there's no space, why not just make your own?"
"Make...?"
He's not so wise, and he lacks imagination.
Suzui is a pacifist, in a sense, that he don't think using underhanded tactics and trickery is good, even if he know it will benefit him or the people around and important to him.
In addition to it, he doesn't think of any possible scenarios to happen after doing or deciding something. Even though we've only just met, I can imagine that Suzui has been living his life here at Hyakkaou as a silent, not-committed student without any particular motives.
I'm sure he has a reason for enrolling here, and I also may be wrong by this, but I can pretty much guarantee that his life may not be so good with that personality.
Nevertheless, despite saying all of this, I don't think of him as a burden or someone who cannot contribute anything. Not only does he have the talent, he still have room for improvements. So I'm pretty sure I need to deal with him sooner or later.
But not right now.
I need to tame a naughty cat first.
"Yes, it'll work as long as there is room between floors, no?" Yumeko formed an imaginary gap using her hands. "If so, all you need to do this build a building like that."
"This building may not have been like that from the start, but it's still possible that the president renovated for the sake of that one gamble..."
I'm sure all of this sounds ideal and impossible to Suzui, and of course, if any other students heard of this scenario coming from Yumeko, I'm sure they'll just shrugged it off as nonsense and will think she's desperate after her loss.
But in the situation we are in? I couldn't be more surprise if that's really the case.
Considering the fact that this school is already weird itself, and the students all think of gambling and money, such a thing could really happen if the council or any other higher ups wants it.
All you need to have is money and the position and authority to do so.
And which people fills in on this criterias?
The student council, or specifically, the president.
"Ahh... It would be wonderful if that was true!" Clenching her hands together above her chest, Yumeko said so with a smile of ecstasy.
"Wh...What are you saying? How much work would that have been for such a little thing?"
Suzui has a point. It is definitely unthinkable that the president will do such a petty thing just for the sake of Cho-da's [ Life and Death ] game.
Even if Nishinotouin is a member of the council, just by watching her interaction with the president, I am pretty much guaranteed she is not in good terms with her. So doing this won't make any sense.
So why?
If what Yumeko all said turned out to be true, then there's only two possible reason for this.
The first one is that, they made the gap between the Cha-do room and this room for the badger to fit in to guarantee Nishinotouin's win every time she play.
With this, there's no way for the pets to turn around their situation, and they will be stuck as a pet forever unless they pay off their debts.
This may sound like a cruel ploy if that is the real intention of the council— to make sure no one can get away with the leashes that has been put on students neck, but cruelty is something the president enjoys, or pretty much everyone on the council.
Nevertheless, a lot of loopholes still exist within this argument, but pointing them out now won't make any difference and point at all.
The same goes for the second possible reason. Explaining them now won't make any sense at all unless I've got enough information at hand.
"That's true. It's quite a ridiculous thing to say." Yumeko must've thought it herself that this whole scenario she came up with is definitely not realistic. "Normally, you wouldn't even consider it as a possibility... It's beyond the realms of thought, unless... Unless it's a crazed person..."
Suzui kept silent, listening to every words she is saying. He must've already known what kind of attitude and personality the existence known as Jabami Yumeko has.
"Yep, I've decided!" She turned around and looked at us. Her face covered in deep red blush. "I want to gamble with the student council president!"
"W-What?!" Suzui was the first to react, while I kept staring at Yumeko.
Actually, there's no reason to be surprised. We all know that Yumeko loves the thrill of gambling. The chances of winning and losing. Using any means necessary to increase the chances of winning.
"Fufu...I'm sure the president is not an ordinary gambler by any means, no?" She sounds really dedicated on fighting Kirari, that she cannot hide her excitement on her voice.
How naive
"Exactly! The Momobami family is just...!"
For the first time, what Suzui's supposed to say caught my attention. After all, this is a valuable information about the president. And not just her, but her family too. This is something I can definitely use in the near future.
But before he could continue, his phone started ringing. He widened his eyes upon hearing the caller's voice and immediately left soon after picking up the call, saying something urgent happened and he needs to go now.
But no matter, I can extract this information anytime from him or simply investigate as a last resort. What's important right now is my business with Yumeko.
Before coming up with this approach, I first guaranteed that I won't make any miscalculations that will pose a problem in the upcoming future.
After all, the existence known as Jabami Yumeko wants thrill, excitement and pleasure on gambling above anything else.
And just by hearing her recent statement about wanting to gamble with the president, this confirmed everything about my conclusion.
"Say, Yumeko..." Hands in my packet, I slowly walked forward towards the podium. There, I sat on the teacher's table, my eyes still glued on her own.
"Yes?"
But, I'm still wondering about something.
After hearing her words, analyzing her actions and the way she approach things, with the way she speak and the way she thinks, I'm still left with a question that can only be answered by straight out asking her.
"What made you so obsessed on this sort of feeling?"
Instead of wanting the feeling of winning and the pleasure of getting the reward of her hardwork, she loves the feeling of being cornered and thinking of a way to turn around the situation.
It's something sort of a masochist will feel, but not necessarily like that. She loves to see how her opponent will do underhanded tactics against her to reduce her chances of winning to 0, and coming back up again while pulling off a miracle.
No— calling it a miracle may sound rude to her.
She already knows what her opponent did in the first place, and she'll only play along with it to see their faces of despair after turning the tables against them.
Now, this made her look like a sadist. Yet, not necessarily like that.
It is confusing. Her existence is definitely not something you can grasp and analyze just by paying attention and making hypothetical conclusions.
Her actions so far is something I haven't encountered in the past, not even in the white room. She's like a mixture of Ryueen, Sakayanagi and Ichinose altogether.
So, what made her the way she is right now?
I'll say this first, but I'm not particularly interested in her past. But I'm merely curious as to what particular event in the past made her like this.
"I was born like this, so it's a natural feeling."
"Lies."
I already expected that kind of response.
I've been like this since I was a kid
Can you blame me for growing up this way?
There's nothing I can do about it, I am who I am after all
I can sense that she's feeling suspicious and danger towards me. After all, I've all been nothing but a mere normal, silent student who caught the attention of my fellow second year classmates. And I'm sure she also knows the fact that the council; Kirari in particular, is interested towards me.
But why?
Yumeko surely asked herself that. My first gamble is won by sheer luck after all. A one in a million chances. A gamble where luck merely favored me.
So how about I'll make her realize why?
I stood up, slowly approaching Yumeko with my usual poker face, intently staring at her eyes as she slowly walk back away on rhythm with my walking pace.
The moment her back hits the concrete wall, I pushed my hands against the side of her face and shortened the distance between our faces, our breathes reaching one another's faces.
"Say, do you really want to gamble against the president?"
She kept silent, but her eyes is staring at mine with a smile of pleasure on her face.
Despite knowing that she doesn't have the necessary ability to win against Kirari, nevertheless, she still stated what she truly felt.
And of course, I do not doubt her intention, not even one bit. I'm 100% guaranteed she meant those words she spouted, and her feeling that way only favors me to be honest.
But that feeling alone isn't enough
"Despite lacking the necessary ability to win, you still want to gamble against her. Do you really want to sink in to the bottom of the caste system with millions of unpaid debts?"
She already have a total amount of 310 million yen, a tremendous amount of money that not even a normal salary man can earn on an annual basis. It'll take them years and years of work to be able to earn that kind of amount.
But Yumeko is a minor, much less a student. She doesn't have any way to earn money by any means but to gamble.
Yet, as a pet, she doesn't have the freedom to gamble as she please anymore. The rules won't let her. And even if she does, gambling is still too risky.
After all, you need a necessary amount of money to play, the chances of winning and losing is all but a mere illusion created by the gambling system.
In the end, what you need to do is make use of your ability and do whatever necessary thing to do to win. May it be playing dirty or playing fair, the choice is for you and you alone to make.
"Of course."
"Go figure, you're much dumber than I initially thought..."
I didn't mean those words. I pretty much suspected she feels that way. So long as she felt the ecstatic pleasure she have been craving for, she's willing to sacrifice even her own freedom to live.
But in order to smoothly operate my plan, I need to say things that will make her realize her own shortcomings.
No— if I may be honest, I don't plan on saying it straight out like giving a free candy on a kid who wants to eat one.
"What do you mean?"
"Whatever do I mean? Have you even realized what kind of image you have in this school? Talk about hypocrisy."
Of course that's not true. She may be a gambling maniac, but outside of the gambling industry, she's nothing more than an ordinary girl who's oblivious of things that doesn't piqued her interest.
She only know what she think is interesting.
And her image as a 'cute kitten' is something she doesn't know and aware about because it is nothing more than a figure that everyone sees.
Only me, Suzui and a few number of people knows how she becomes whenever she gambles.
Thus, calling it as hypocrisy is wrong.
"Why are you suddenly acting like this...?" For the first time, her face showed an expression of worry.
Is she worried about herself and what will happen to her? Or is she worried about me? It doesn't matter. I do not plan on physically harming her, and considering her personality, psychological warfare won't really affect her either.
So what kind of approach will work against Yumeko?
There's nothing to do but to simply talk it out, create a facade that she haven't seen before, make her think that I'm being a hypocrite, and make her think that I'm someone worthy of her interest.
After all, for her, I am nothing more than a regular male high schooler that has nothing special about me. So I will approach this case in the most vague way possible.
"Because I want you to realize your own shortcomings. The way you approach things, the way you plan things out, the way you think and the way you reveal your enemies plans on their faces..." I purposely stopped talking, this way, I want her to be eaten by her own curiousity.
She widened her eyes in surprise. After all, she wouldn't expect for someone like me to say such an absurd things.
Me? Shortcomings?
If she were to think that way, and she doubted herself even for a second, this is my win. But if she trust herself that her ability is already good as it is...
It's still my win either
However, did I really meant what I said?
"Please tell me, Kiyotaka-san!"
So the former happened
"Tell you what?"
"My...shortcomings..."
Yes, she has a definite flaw that even the president knows about. Her own shortcoming that will make her lose every time she plays if the opponent knows about it.
It is because she thinks of gambling as a mere source of entertainment
In a school such as Hyakkaou, where students all strive for the winning possibilities, each and every students all wants to win just to survive. Earning money is just an addition to it, but merely improving and surviving is their outmost goal.
But Yumeko does not think the same way that they do.
Exceptional students like this tends to feel pleasure on the thrill of danger. The possible scenarios to happen after losing and the consequences of their actions, that's what makes them feel alive.
And Yumeko is one of those, and that makes her dangerous, yet naive.
Once someone figured out about this, they can simply use the same tactic as her. They can simply play along with her, use a much more advanced approach combined with a trickery, and the battle will end up with Yumeko losing.
The same thing happened to her battle with Nishinotouin. She was so focused on making Nishinotouin feel despair that the president took advantage of it to turn the table against her.
And everyone can simply do so if they have the mind to do it.
That's why, if she wants to win, she needs to improve. I'm not necessarily saying that she needs to stop feeling pleasure by this kind of things. In fact, this is her focal point that makes her even wiser and stronger.
But against Kirari? No.
If she wants to simply battle against Kirari, then I wouldn't even bother taking this gamble of destroying our friendship. But I'm sure she doesn't want to simply face off against the president.
"I wonder."
"...."
I removed my hand against the wall and put it in my pocket. I turned around and walked away for a little just to increase the gap between us.
"If you really want to know, the best way to do so is to gain experience."
Experience beats the educated. If someone who reads textbooks about engineering fought or talked to an experienced engineer, then that person will most likely embarrass himself in front of the experienced on the field.
Right now, Yumeko is still learning. The same goes for me too, that's why I need to gain experience as well. But by taking this actions early on, I have, at least gained her attention to me.
Is she wary of me? Suspicious? It doesn't matter at all. So long as I piqued her attention, may it be in a positive or negative way, that's all that matters.
I started to walk away, and the moment I reached the door, I turned my head to the side and shot a glance to Yumeko's figure. She still has her back on the wall, looking at me with a blush on her face.
"Before I leave..." I opened the door and returned my head in front. "I want you to know that... You shouldn't take all things... Too seriously."
Sigh... I guess I really have grown soft after all...
With that, I left the classroom and made my way back to my apartment.