Kakegurui: Ten Consecutive Guaranteed Hits

Chapter 52: Kiyohei's "Goodwill"

Although Mikura despised Kiyohei's behavior, she was more than willing to cooperate with him. Kiyohei had said something that resonated with her – their goals were aligned in wanting Mary to lose. As for the reasons, Mikura refused to disclose anything to Kiyohei.

After discussing the details, the two returned to the Literary Club's casino. At this point, Mary was sitting upright in the seat she had occupied before. Kiyohei and Mikura exchanged a glance and took their positions as the house.

The rules of the game remained the same as before, with dealer Mikura conducting the dice rolls. Rolling one, two, or three points was labeled as "Down," while rolling four, five, or six points was labeled as "Up," abbreviated as D and U, respectively.

Mikura took out two pieces of paper and two pens from her pocket, handing them to Kiyohei and Mary. Both of them needed to guess the results of three consecutive dice rolls, using three letters as shorthand.

They had to write down their guesses on paper and then hand them to the dealer, Mikura. She would keep rolling the dice until one side's guessed result appeared first, determining the winner.

Before writing, Kiyohei deliberately cleared his throat to make sure Mary heard.

"Mary, don't blame me for not giving you a chance. As long as it's for victory, you can use any means you want, and I won't stop you."

Mary hesitated with her hand poised to write. She raised her head, looking at Kiyohei with surprise.

Mary had previously told Kiyohei that she had a way to increase her chances of winning, which involved using nail polish remover to paint over the original answer. When the right moment came, she could pour water on it, revealing a different answer. Regardless of which of the two arrangements appeared, she would still win.

She had originally intended to gamble with Kiyohei in a fair manner in this game. However, Kiyohei's sudden statement made her wonder. Could it be that Kiyohei was hinting that she should use the nail polish remover?

With this premise in mind, Mary probably guessed what Kiyohei and Mikura had discussed when they went out – they wanted her to help Kiyohei cheat. Mikura's cheating method involved looking at her own answer and then switching to a card that could counter Mary's answer. For example, if she had the cards DUU in her hand, Mikura would change Kiyohei's cards to DDU, ensuring that Kiyohei's cards appeared earlier than Mary's.

But now that she knew Mikura would cheat, she could deliberately write one answer and then use the nail polish remover to write another answer that countered her opponent's. This would greatly increase her chances of winning. If they were to gamble in a normal way, their chances of winning would be evenly matched at fifty-fifty.

With both sides cheating, Mary believed that her chances of winning could reach seventy percent. Could it be that Kiyohei was intentionally trying to give her a victory? It felt as if she had received a surprise gift on her birthday, and Mary's heart was filled with sweetness. To conceal the smile on her lips, she quickly lowered her head, pretending to be in deep thought.

He didn't want her to borrow money for gambling, but he wanted to gift her a victory in this way. Kiyohei was really kind to her. Could it be that he... liked her?

A bold thought crossed Mary's mind. However, she quickly dismissed the idea and admonished herself silently.

Mary, don't be delusional. He's from a wealthy family. How could he possibly be interested in a poor girl like you? Maybe he's just helping you out of pity, considering you as a friend. Don't misunderstand!

But... what if?

What if he truly liked her, and that's why he care so much about her?

Mary's heart was in turmoil, and she suddenly became uncertain. As the dealer, Mikura was annoyed to see Mary taking so long to write her answer. She clicked her tongue and urged, "Saotome-san, can you be quicker? Don't waste any more time."

"Okay... I'm writing now!" Mary snapped out of her reverie and quickly responded. She reminded herself that they were still in the middle of a gamble, and she needed to focus on winning this match. This was a chance specifically given to her by Kiyohei, and she had to seize it.

Mary swiftly wrote down her answer on her piece of paper. Then, she discreetly took out the nail polish remover, hid her actions from Mikura, and stealthily applied a few strokes to her answer. She waited for the nail polish remover to dry before handing the paper to Mikura.

On Kiyohei's side, he had already written his answer and given it to Mikura. However, the actual content of his answer didn't matter since Mikura would replace his cards according to their agreement.

Impatiently, Mikura took Mary's paper, and when she saw the answer, she paused in surprise. What was Mary thinking when she wrote "UUU"?

Did Mary not realize that the expected outcome of three consecutive "Up" was 14? She had previously written combinations with an expectation of 8, so why the sudden change to "UUU" this time? Mikura thought she might have made a mistake, so she rubbed her eyes and looked again. No matter how she looked at it, it was "UUU." Although there were some water stains on it, it didn't affect readability. Maybe Mary wanted to mess things up...

Mikura didn't delve into why Mary had written it that way. She discreetly swapped Kiyohei's card with the one in her sleeve, replacing it with "DUU," which could counter Mary. As long as luck wasn't extremely bad, this card would undoubtedly appear before Mary's answer.

"Both sides have confirmed their cards, and I'm about to start rolling the dice," Mikura coughed lightly, taking out the dice from her pocket and beginning the throws.

"The first round is... 'Down.'"

"The second round is... 'Up.'"

"The third round is... 'Down.'"

As they watched Mikura's throws, Mary's impatience grew. She couldn't wait any longer; it was time to act. Mary's gaze fell on her own answer card not far away.

She pretended to be thirsty and took out a somewhat rustic-looking water cup from her backpack very naturally. She discreetly glanced at Kiyohei and noticed he was fixated on her water cup. Blushing slightly, she quickly took a sip of water.

It seemed that Kiyohei had already understood what she was planning, but he didn't voice any objections. Indeed, he was on her side. Even though she was drinking plain water, Mary could taste a sweet flavor within it.