Chapter 13: A Big Win

I thought I’d be bombarded with questions about baby play or kiss marks, but instead, the explanation of this gambling setup begins without much idle chatter.

I need to listen carefully and not miss a single word.

Scammers often slip important information in so naturally that it feels inconspicuous. I came here under the condition that I wouldn’t pay a single yen out of my own pocket. I absolutely refuse to end up at a loss.

“Here, this is your 5,000-yen chip.”

They even have chips? This is pretty serious.

Do they get club funding for this, or is it coming out of their own pockets?

“Oh, thanks…”

Is it called a Crown chip? There’s a crown logo on the back.

It has a unique texture. Where do they even buy this kind of thing?

I don’t know its exact cost, but it feels fancy—maybe because of the crown.

“The number on the chip is the amount of money it’s worth.”

“I see… so that’s one 1,000-yen chip, two 500-yen chips, and then 100-yen chips, right?”

“Yeah, that’s right. Don’t worry, I can exchange chips for you whenever you need.”

I’m not really concerned about that, but for some reason, this is making me feel tense.

Am I really allowed to bet here? I don’t plan on paying a single yen myself, though.

“You said you know Chinchirorin, right? I’m thinking we’ll play that.”

“Uh, y-yeah. That’s fine.”

I’ve never played it in real life, but I know the rules. I’ve read about it in manga and tried it out briefly in video games. I never really found it that entertaining, though.

Still, Chinchiro, huh…?

To be honest, I’m relieved. At least with Chinchiro, there’s not much room for cheating.

Sure, they could rig the dice with magnets or weights, but as long as I watch out for swaps, I should be fine. Probably.

It’s definitely more relaxing than dealing with cards, where you have to worry about marked cards, shuffling tricks, dealing methods, and so on.

And Mahjong wouldn’t make sense with just two people anyway.

“Bucho, what’s that? Chinchin-rollroll?”

“It’s Chinchirorin, you idiot.”

I thought that sporty girl might not be too bright, but is she really that clueless?

Though, I have to admit, it’s kind of cute.

Huh? The club president’s face looks a bit red. Is it just the way the sunlight’s hitting her?

“We’re betting money, right? Then I’ll…”

The shy, bookish-looking girl volunteers as my opponent.

It’s surprising that she’s this assertive, but more importantly…

“Just the two of us? Chinchiro is usually played with a bunch of people, isn’t it?”

With only two people, there’s no real fun in playing the “banker.”

And no, I don’t mean a literal parent—I’m talking about the gambler’s role as the “bank.”

The president isn’t the banker either, after all…

“It’s a hassle when people go completely broke in a large group.”

I see what she means.

If it’s my turn to be the banker, it would be tricky for them to place their bets.

“To avoid any issues later, let me explain the rules briefly.”

With that, she gives a quick explanation using the dice.

It matches what I already know.

You roll three dice, and if two match, the third die determines your score.

For example, if you get three, three, and four, your score is four.

Your opponent has to roll higher than that or make a special hand to win.

If you roll a one, you automatically lose. If you roll a six, you automatically win.

If you fail to roll a valid combination in three tries, or if the dice roll off the table or land on top of each other, you lose.

There are no double payouts or anything like that beyond the special hands.

“We’re using the special hands Hifumi, Shigoro, and Arashi.”

These are the special hands I know.

Hifumi is a straight of one, two, and three—you automatically lose.

Shigoro is a straight of four, five, and six—you automatically win.

Arashi means all three dice are the same.

“What about the multipliers?”

“Hifumi means you pay double if you lose, Shigoro lets you take double if you win, and Arashi is triple. But Pinzoro and Omen are five times.”

“Omen means rolling triple sixes?”

“Exactly.”

So the max multiplier is five times. I’d better not place too big a bet.

No wonder we’re playing one-on-one.

“You can bet in 100-yen increments, but the maximum bet should be something you can afford even if you have to pay five times.”

“Understood.”

Now I’m getting excited.

Gambling with someone else’s money? There’s no better deal than that.

“If you have more than 5,000 yen in chips, you can stop the game. But of course, you’ll have to return the initial 5,000 yen.”

“What if I fall below that?”

“If your chips go down to 500 yen or less, you keep playing until then. But you don’t have to pay anything out of pocket if you lose.”

That sounds almost too good to be true.

They probably won’t just let me walk away easily, though. Might as well enjoy myself.

…

I think about half an hour has passed.

I don’t sense any cheating, and small amounts of chips have been bouncing back and forth between me and the bookish girl.

At one point, she suddenly went all-in with a max bet, which made me suspicious, but I won that round.

After that, I lost a few small bets, but I’m still slightly ahead.

If I quit now, I’d walk away with a 600-yen profit… Maybe I can use time as an excuse to escape?

“Uh, Buchou-san.”

“Oh? What’s up?”

“This service for 5,000 yen is only for today, right? So, if I keep the 5,600 yen I won, could we… like, continue the game tomorrow?”

“Nah, no way. If you’re stopping, take the 600 yen and leave. Starting tomorrow, you’ll be betting for real.”

…In that case, maybe I’ll gamble everything away?

Even if I lose, it’s not my money anyway.

“Alright, 1,100 yen.”

Might as well go all in. There’s no point in playing small.

I’ll just keep repeating this until I break 10,000 yen.

“Oh no, that’s Hifumi…”

Seriously? The moment I go max bet, I double my winnings?

This feels too lucky—it’s making me uneasy. Are they buttering me up so they can pull some trick later?

No… they haven’t shown any sign of cheating.

While I’m lost in thought, the game continues uneventfully.

“Hmm… it’s been an hour already. Maybe we should stop here?”

“Let’s see… you’ve got 8,200 yen, so that’s 3,200 yen in profit.”

Wait, seriously? They’re just going to let me cash out like that?

This is amazing. For a no-risk gamble, I couldn’t ask for better.

No, no—I can’t let myself get hooked. I was only able to play this way because it wasn’t my money. I’m never coming back here again.

I firmly resolve to quit gambling forever and reach for the money—when the bookish girl stops me.

“It’s only been an hour. Let’s play some more!”

…Oh, come on.

“Isn’t it my choice when to stop?”

“Of course it is. That’s why I’m asking, please.”

She’s really persistent…

Are they just going to keep me here until I lose everything?

…This is annoying. Fine.

“Alright, let’s do a single round of ‘Cho-Han.’ I’ll bet the entire 8,200 yen.”

I push all the chips forward.

This is the fastest way to end it. If I lose, so be it. If I win, I’ll have 16,400 yen. Subtract the 5,000 I have to return, and I’ll walk away with 11,400 yen.

“Really? Thank you so much!”

The bookish girl grabs my hand and beams like I just gave her a gift.

Is her brain fried from gambling?

If she loses, she’ll be down an insane amount of money.

“But I’m the one rolling the dice.”

“That’s fine. I choose ‘Cho.’”

No hesitation, huh…? Isn’t she worried about cheating?

Well, not that I’d do it.

Oh? A roll of one and two—‘Han.’ I win.

“Nice, Saka-chan the Omutsu-er!”

Despite her club member losing horribly, the club president throws an arm around my shoulder, all smiles.

“I’m not an Omutsu-er for nothing.”

Yeah, yeah, thanks. I’m Saka-chan, the diaper guy.

Is it really okay for me to win this much money? My hands are shaking.

“I lost…”

Poor girl. She looks crushed.

Well, yeah. That’s way too much money for a high schooler to gamble.

“Saka-chan, don’t you dare pity her. The loser’s the one at fault here.”

I mean… I’m not giving the money back, but I do feel a little bad.

She’s just staring at the ceiling, totally out of it.

…

“If you’re not satisfied, we can go for one more round.”

This is such reckless betting. Statistically, my win rate at Chinchiro isn’t even that good.

But hey, it’s easy money. If I lose, I lose.

“R-Really? Then this time, I’ll choose ‘Cho’ again!”

This girl’s insane.

If she loses, she’ll be down over 30,000 yen, yet she’s more fired up than ever.

The pressure’s intense. This feels like a losing streak waiting to happen…

But when I toss the dice with half-hearted resignation—another win.

Am I strong at this? Am I secretly a gambling prodigy?

“Wow… When I saw you playing so timidly earlier, I thought maybe you didn’t have… you know…”

“…Huh? Did you say something?”

“No… never mind.”

She muttered something too quietly to hear, but whatever.

So, 32,800 yen… subtract 5,000, and I’ve got 27,800 yen.

Whoa. That’s more than six months’ worth of allowance.

“Here you go…”

Looking defeated, she slumps over and pushes the pile of chips toward me.

I do feel kind of bad… but hey, she brought this on herself. I’ll still take it, though.

“Alright, could you cash these out for me?”

“Wait a second.”

What now? She’s still not done?

I already feel guilty as hell. I don’t need any more of this…

“I’m about 2,000 yen short…”

Oh, so that’s what it is.

Honestly, the fact she even has 30,000 yen on her is wild. That’s not an amount a high schooler should be carrying around.

“What do you want to do, Saka-chan? Wait for her? Or…”

“Or?”

“Take the payment in kind?”

…What the hell is this president saying?

It’s just 2,000 yen.

“No, it’s fine. I won too much anyway.”

Sure, I’ll miss that 2,000 yen, but I’ve won plenty already.

“Hey, are you mocking gamblers right now?”

Suddenly, she grabs me by the collar and snaps at me.

Uh, this is scary—and your face is way too close.

“She gambled without the money to back it up. You can’t just let her off the hook.”

“But if she doesn’t have it, then…”

“That’s why she’ll pay in kind.”

“Sorry, Sakamoto-san… you wouldn’t want my body, would you…? I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry…”

Oh no.

She’s so devastated by her loss, she’s not thinking straight anymore.

“Buchou-san, if I do let this slide…”

“I’ll… I’ll rip your ki—uh, your thing off.”

I couldn’t catch what she said exactly, but it sounds like I’d suffer greatly.

Yeah, no thanks.

“…Fine.”

I let out a sigh.

“Alright, I’ll take the 2,000 yen payment… in kind.”

“Yes! Please do as you like!”

Why is she so ready for this?

She flops backward dramatically, like some delinquent hero offering himself as a punching bag.

“Go ahead.”

“…Alright.”

No need to be so tense… I’m not going to do anything bad over 2,000 yen.

I gently lift her into a hug.

Ah… this is nice.

This is what a hug is supposed to feel like.

Not the crushing bear hug of someone with superhuman strength, or being coddled by some weirdo pretending to be my mom.

This is peaceful.

“W-Wha… Wawawa…”

I hear the president making strange noises behind me, but I pretend not to notice.

After about a minute, I let go.

“Alright. Thanks. I’ve received my payment.”

“Uh… Sakamoto-san?”

“What? Are you saying I went too far?”

“No, it’s just… was that all?”

I mean, it’s only 2,000 yen.

A one-minute hug with a high school girl? That’s a pretty good deal, if you ask me.

“…Didn’t you say I could do as I like?”

“I… I guess I’m not worth touching, huh…”

Her self-esteem is dangerously low.

Anyway, with my winnings, I quickly get the chips exchanged, avoiding any further weird developments.

I didn’t ask for anyone’s name and bolted out of the room.

That’s it. I’m done here.

Even after deducting the 5,000 yen I returned and the 2,000 yen “hug fee,” I’ve still got 25,800 yen.

Maybe I should use this money to buy a game. Yeah, that’s a much safer bet.