"Ha! Naoki, you came to see me... and it turns out it's about another woman?"
Inside one of the club building rooms, Mayoi Namashima had lit up with joy upon seeing Naoki at her door. But the second he mentioned another girl's name, her expression soured with visible annoyance.
"Uh, not exactly," Naoki explained quickly, sensing her jealousy flare. "Something happened today, and I overheard your name from the Beautification Committee. I realized you're my classmate and thought I'd drop by."
"I see... Beautification Committee, huh? We had a little bet. Nothing major," Mayoi replied nonchalantly.
Naoki casually prodded, "I heard you cheated and still lost. Is that true?"
"Hahahaha!" Mayoi burst into laughter, completely unfazed. "Well, I did lose—but I didn't cheat."
"I wanted to test that woman's poise, so I proposed a bet. She accepted and chose dice," Mayoi said, spreading her arms wide. The room was filled with all kinds of gambling equipment—cards, boards, even arcade machines.
Naoki nodded. "Miharu Taki Sakura's the type who doesn't like wasting time. Dice would be the quickest option."
"Exactly. She picked out this die from the room." Mayoi retrieved a die from a box on the shelf. "Here, take a look."
Naoki held it in her hand and examined it...
Didn't seem out of the ordinary.
"That die is rigged. The weight is skewed toward the two-side, so it always rolls a five."
Naoki: ...
Sorry, I couldn't feel anything. I'm still a total rookie.
Even after focusing hard, all she sensed was a vague imbalance. If Mayoi hadn't said anything, she'd never have noticed.
Such a tiny difference in weight... Her current body just wasn't sensitive enough yet. Her gambling skills still needed serious training.
"And then?" she asked.
"Then she gave me the die to roll. The bet was odd or even. She chose even."
"It landed even. So she won."
Naoki looked puzzled.
Mayoi, lounging on the sofa, tossed another die onto the table.
"Sakura's reasoning was pretty sharp. She figured I deliberately had her pick the rigged die and deduced that it was weighted toward two, thus more likely to land odd."
"She thought I'd swap the die during the shake and use one that'd roll even, securing my win."
Mayoi tossed the die again and smiled. "Honestly, she's observant and smart. But... her thinking is too conventional."
"I did swap the die. But I swapped it with a normal one."
Naoki deadpanned. "You already had a rigged die—anyone would assume you'd keep cheating."
"Exactly. She's too normal."
Seeing Mayoi's slight irritation, Naoki added, "Well, she underestimated your integrity."
Mayoi squinted at her, lips curling. "Hmph, I'm not the kind of person who backs down from a fair gamble."
Sure, but you're also known for throwing chaos into every gambling hall you walk into. No one thinks you're exactly... honorable.
But for Mayoi, gambling wasn't about winning money. She just chased the thrill.
Having gathered info about Miharu Taki Sakura, Naoki sat down to sip tea and think.
Mayoi's encounter sparked an idea. If she wanted to drag Sakura into a game and force some real interaction, she'd need to use unorthodox methods.
Like... debt that regular committee members couldn't easily collect.
Still, Naoki's slender arms were no match for the Beautification Committee's enforcers.
And if she kept refusing to pay, she'd just get branded as livestock.
But gambling wasn't the goal—just the means. The real goal was to leave a deep impression on Miharu Taki Sakura, or better yet, earn her favor.
But first—she needed an excuse to act. And a way to ensure Sakura would respond.
Naoki looked over at Mayoi, who was currently locked in a finger-wrestling match with her minions.
There was someone who could help.
If she acted under Mayoi Namashima's name, the chances of Sakura accepting a challenge would rise dramatically.
But she couldn't let Mayoi see through her real motive.
She needed a pretext.
"Hey, Mayoi, want to gamble a few rounds?"
Mayoi lit up and scooted closer excitedly. "Ooh! What should we play? How about that Finger-Cut Blackjack we played last time?"
"No. I've just been practicing with dice lately. Let's play dice games—just for money."
"Ahh," Mayoi pouted, disappointed, but didn't argue.
"Call the Regulatory Committee."
"So official?"
"If it's not formal, I worry you'll go easy on me."
"Hah, I never hold back in a gamble."
The Regulatory Committee monitored formal gambling. Its members acted as the school's official dealers and record-keepers. If a player feared a loss wouldn't be acknowledged, calling in the committee ensured it'd be properly logged.
Of course, most casual bets around the school weren't supervised.
To reduce workload, the committee only oversaw bets of one million yen or more.
Soon, a member of the Regulatory Committee arrived—a petite loli, of course. Due to the chairwoman's personal preferences, the entire committee consisted of small, adorable girls.
Chairwoman Luna Yomizuki herself was a tiny loli, not some kind of pervert. Allegedly.
"High-Low dice, huh? One million. Ten chips each. Minimum one chip per round. Game ends when one player runs out, or after ten rounds—the one with more chips wins."
Simple enough. The hoodie-clad loli yawned.
Each player used three dice in a cup. The loser of the previous round chose whether the next round would bet on high or low. The choice was made after both sides rolled, but before revealing the results. So even if you rolled high, you could lose if the round was set to low.
Dice-shaking was gambling 101. Some talented players could even control the outcome.
Naoki, of course, had zero experience.
In the first round, she played cautiously and bet just one chip.
Mayoi matched her, sticking out her tongue playfully. "Naoki, show me what you've got!"
Since it was the first round, they rolled to decide whether to compare high or low. Result: high.
Naoki covered the dice cup, then began shaking—
And the next second—
One of her dice flew out.
Naoki froze, then sheepishly set the cup down and picked it up from the floor.
Silence.
Even the half-asleep loli committee member looked up in shock.
"Sorry... First time shaking three dice. Not used to it."
Everyone: …
The loli sighed. "Are you serious? Look, newbie or not, if you lose, you owe a million yen."
She'd seen Naoki's technique and could tell she was a complete amateur.
Mayoi was speechless for a second, then burst out laughing, rolling on the couch.
"Oh my god, Naoki, are you trying to throw the match for me?"
"Should we switch games?"
Naoki scowled. "We're not done yet. I've figured out the motion now."
Since the Regulatory Committee was overseeing it, they couldn't just stop.
Mayoi sat back up and grabbed her cup—though clearly less seriously this time.
They restarted Round One. This time, Naoki managed a clean shake and covered the dice properly... though she had no clue what she'd rolled.
Mayoi finished as well.
Both revealed their dice.
"Utsugi: 1, 1, 2. Total: 4."
"Namashima: 4, 5, 6. Total: 15."
"Round One: Namashima wins," the loli announced.
Well, losing the first round wasn't too surprising for a newbie.
Naoki smiled calmly. "If we'd played for low, I'd have won with four."
Mayoi raised a brow.
In Round Two, it was Mayoi's turn to bet—she put down three chips.
If Naoki didn't match, she'd lose the round and pay a chip.
But Naoki had the advantage—she got to declare high or low.
She matched the bet.
Both rolled again.
"Naoki, high or low?"
"Guess."
"Last round you rolled a four, so most people would go with low."
"Most people, yeah. But I'm a madwoman, like you. I say high."
Naoki smirked. "Nice baiting, trying to get me to pick low. You probably rolled low this round."
Indeed, experienced gamblers could influence their rolls. Mayoi couldn't choose exact values, but could generally aim high or low.
Reveal!
Mayoi covered her face.
"Namashima: 2, 2, 3. Total: 7."
"Utsugi: 1, 2, 3. Total: 6."
"Namashima wins!"
Naoki: …
Mayoi: …
"Hahaha! Naoki, low numbers just love you. You guessed I rolled low, and still managed to roll even lower!"
Was this... her true luck?
She'd lost forty thousand already.
Next round, Naoki's turn to bet.
"All in!"
All six chips.
Mayoi blinked. "Going big? I thought you'd stick with one chip."
"Hmph. This is my turn to declare. If I don't go all-in now, when else will I?"
Exactly—since Mayoi could control her rolls, she'd just wipe Naoki out on her own terms if left unchecked.
Naoki had to seize the rounds where she had leverage.
But… high or low?
She'd rolled low twice. Did she naturally roll low?
But Mayoi had rolled low last time too—maybe predicting that choice?
Naoki couldn't manipulate dice. She was gambling blind.
Still... gut feeling?
They both finished rolling.
"Utsugi-sama, declare high or low."
"Uhh…" Naoki narrowed her eyes, watching Mayoi for a reaction.
"I've got a feeling I rolled low again."
Mayoi's face didn't change. No interest? No tension?
She was unreadable.
Without micro-expression training, Naoki couldn't tell a thing.
Failed to read her.
"Low," Naoki declared.
Mayoi smiled faintly. "Naoki, don't tell me you've lost your nerve. That's not like you."
Mayoi uncovered her dice. "Guess I read you wrong."
Her total: 3, 5, 6 — 14 points.
Gambling styles reflect personality. The bold charge forward. The sly switch tactics.
Naoki blinked, realizing that her reckless move in that Finger-Cut Blackjack game had given Mayoi the wrong impression.
Oops.
Naoki lifted her cup.
2, 4, 4 — 10 points.
"Utsugi-sama wins this round," the loli announced.
She had aimed for a low roll, but ended up with ten—barely under the threshold.
Naoki sighed. She still needed practice.
But the win doubled her chips to twelve—a comeback.
However…
Now that Mayoi had realized Naoki adjusted after setbacks, she shifted gears. She went all-in twice, rolling perfectly to match the declared high or low each time.
In just two more rounds, Naoki's chips were gone.
Gambling talent—real gambling talent—was a thing.
Observation. Judgment.
Naoki was still far from reaching their level.
System Notification: Congratulations, Host. Although you lost to Mayoi Namashima, you briefly turned the tide based on your own judgment. +2 EXP!
On the other side, the loli flatly declared, "Final result: Mayoi Namashima wins. Utsugi Naoki is to pay…"