Waking Up Engaged to a Cool Yandere Beauty: My Wild Journey with a Love-Obsessed Senior - Episode 47: A Little Break. Let\'s Play the Game of Life.

Episode 47: A Little Break. Let’s Play the Game of Life.

In a room as luxurious as a hotel suite, the manager tossed two dice onto the table. There were six of us: the manager, my seniors, Akira, Sunahashi, and myself, all eagerly watching the outcome. Utakata-san had already retired to her room earlier to sleep.

“Behold the roll of destiny! Dice rooooollll!!”

The dice clattered inside the bowl placed on the table. The result?

“Rei – kunnn!!! You’re now 5 billion yen in debt!!!” “Wha—WHAT?!”

How am I supposed to pay back such an enormous debt? Clutching the mountain of IOUs in my hands, I ground my teeth in frustration. At this point, we were about a third of the way through the game.

“…How is a single person supposed to repay 5 billion yen in just two-thirds of their life?”

The game we were playing was called The Depths of Life’s Darkness and Light, a wildly exaggerated version of the Game of Life. Sunahashi had somehow managed to procure it from who knows where.

Now, what’s the difference between this and a regular Game of Life, you ask?

“Akira’s in first place with a total income of 20 billion yen, followed by our senior with 15 billion, and the manager with 12 billion… How is anyone supposed to compete with this?!”

The numbers were ludicrous. Once you accumulated wealth, it doubled exponentially. Conversely, debts would also spiral out of control, thanks to the game’s cruel mechanics. It was as though the only lenders in this world were shady loan sharks.

“Hah, serves you right, Uka!”

Sunahashi, who was sitting comfortably in fourth place, far from both the top and bottom, took the opportunity to mock me.

“Damn it… To be taunted by this guy of all people…” A debt of 5 billion yen was far too crushing.

“Alright, it’s my turn! Spin the wheel!” The manager spun the roulette wheel in the center of the board with vigor. The result? A six.

“Let’s see… This space says, ‘Your business venture succeeds, and you gain 1 billion yen.’ Hmm, not bad, I guess.”

“How is 1 billion not good enough for you?!”

To someone with over 10 billion yen in their account, apparently, a mere billion felt negligible.

“My turn now. Let’s see what I get.” Next up, my senior spun the roulette wheel. The result? An eight.

“…You successfully acquire a major corporation. Gain 500 million yen per turn.”

“What the hell is that?! That’s absurd!!”

She was earning half a billion yen per turn for doing absolutely nothing while my debt continued to balloon every three turns due to compounding interest. The disparity was brutal.

“Alright, Rei, your turn.” “Here we go! All-or-nothing roulette spin!”

This was it. I needed to turn things around and at least pay off my debt. The result? A seven! Lucky seven!

I moved my tiny red piece along the board and landed on a space that read: “It’s here! The modern-day Debt Relief Edict!!”

Debt erased! A legitimate write-off! Finally, my life was about to begin anew.

Or so I thought.

“Hey, Rei, you’re reading it wrong. That space is for players with over 1 billion yen in assets. You’re supposed to take this route instead.”

Akira pointed at the board, her finger indicating another path. “What?”

No way. Bringing my face closer to the board, I checked carefully. Four spaces earlier, there was indeed a split in the path.

“The Path to Wealth or the Back Alley of the Underworld…?” That’s what it said.

“Ahaha, tough luck, Uka.” “Rei-kun…”

The manager and my senior seemed genuinely sympathetic as they patted my shoulders consolingly.

“Pfft, hahaha! What are you even doing, Uka?”

Sunahashi, of all people, was laughing at my misfortune. “Fine, this way then.”

I begrudgingly moved my piece to the indicated route.

“…Let’s see what it says.” Caught in a honey trap. Add 300 million yen to your debt.

“This game is rigged.” How are you even supposed to win at this? And what kind of honey trap racks up 300 million yen?!

“Honestly, Rei-kun… That seems fitting for you somehow.”

“Thanks so much. Care to repay my debt as a favor?”

“Not a chance.” “Some friend you are.”

The game continued. The standings remained unchanged, and everyone kept amassing wealth while my debt grew larger and larger.

Then, an incident occurred as the game neared its conclusion.

I spun the roulette and landed on a four. Moving my piece to the corresponding space, I found…

“A marriage space.” “…What?!”

Startled gasps came from both sides of me.

“R-Rei… W-Who are you marrying? Me? Should I just say it’s me? I’ll even pay off your debt!”

“Rei-kun. My heart is ready. Let us walk the rest of our lives together.”

Two pairs of expectant eyes were fixed on me. This was awkward. It felt like choosing either would lead to disaster.

“Doesn’t seem like you get to choose. Look here.” Akira pointed to the fine print on the board.

“Let’s see… The marriage partner is the player ranked directly above you.”

Which meant… “What?! Nooo! I don’t want to marry Uka!!!”

“…It’s over. No matter how much money you have, true love can’t be bought. Haha… What was the point of my life?”

Huh? The manager’s eyes had lost all light, and she gazed into the distance as if she had just uncovered some profound truth about life.

“W-wait, hold on a second.” Was it that bad? I mean, it was just a game, wasn’t it? Still, I couldn’t deny a small part of me felt flattered.

“… …” “S-Shion-senpai? Are you okay? You’ve been quiet…”

Her expression was vacant, almost lifeless. “I’m done for.”

“Wha—wait, Senpai!!” With the atmosphere so tense, the game had to be called off halfway.

In the end, I didn’t technically lose, but it took me three hours to calm down both the manager and my senior afterward.