Kakegurui: Ten Consecutive Guaranteed Hits

Volume 1 Chapter 24: Just Win It Back if You Lose

Mary's experience was not complicated, and Kiyohei quickly deduced the general sequence of events from their conversation. Mary encountered her past friend, Tsuzura Hanatemari, in her new class. Seeing her being bullied by classmates due to her "livestock" status, Mary stood up for her and was forced to gamble against the person who was bullying Tsuzura. The result... Mary suffered a crushing defeat and lost a large sum of money.

Tsuzura's words made it clear that Mary had been targeted as a new student, rather than standing up for her. Mary took a deep breath, and her expression relaxed a bit. She understood that she shouldn't have directed her anger towards Tsuzura, but after losing such a large amount of money, she was eager to find a target to vent her frustration, which led to her cold attitude.

She knew she had misunderstood Tsuzura, but she couldn't simply pretend that everything was fine and make amends with her. The atmosphere between the two girls became tense. Kiyohei, as always, spoke up to ease the tension.

"Mary, let's not get worked up. I think I understand what happened now. Let me ask you, how much money did you lose?"

Mary clicked her tongue in annoyance and regret. "200,000 yen."

The mention of money made her angry—at herself. Her family's financial situation wasn't great, and although she had earned some money working during the break, she had spent it all on cosmetics to appear more like a lady. When she came to school today, she only had 10,000 yen in pocket money. However, she realized at the gambling table that the minimum bet was also 10,000 yen.

Why did I think that way? Even though I had no money, I still sat at the gambling table, hoping to turn that 10,000 yen into a fortune. I couldn't stop gambling!

Mary couldn't direct her anger towards Tsuzura now, so she shifted her focus to the woman she gambled against.

"That's right, it's all because of Kokoro... She definitely has ill intentions! She deliberately belittled me by saying, 'Since you're a lady, a hundred thousand yen must be nothing to you, right?' And she even pretended to lend me money, just to make me owe her!"

Kokoro was the girl Mary competed against. The more Mary thought about it, the angrier she became. Now she realized that the few wins she had in the beginning might have been intentionally given to her by Kokoro to let her taste the feeling of winning, trapping her in a cycle of delusion, constantly gambling and hoping to turn the tables.

"Oh, by the way, Kiyohei, you also participated in gambling, right?" Mary suddenly turned to Kiyohei. "How much money did you lose?"

Both Mary and Kiyohei were new students, and Mary assumed that Kiyohei had also lost a considerable amount, hoping to find solace and empathy in him. However...

"Although I gambled, I didn't lose any money," Kiyohei shook his head somewhat incredulously. Mary started in surprise. What did he mean? Was she the only one who had foolishly lost?

"I didn't lose, but I also didn't win. I just won back the money I had lost," Kiyohei added.

"Oh, I see. So, you didn't win either..." Mary's eyes lost their gleam instantly, leaning against the wall absentmindedly, she asked, "How much money did you lose before?"

"400,000 yen."

"400,000 yen?! How did you win it back?" Mary abruptly turned her head to look at Kiyohei, reevaluating him. Tsuzura Hanatemari, who was standing beside her, also stared at Kiyohei with a surprised expression.

Although it may not seem like it, could it be that Kiyohei is actually an incredibly skilled gambler?

Kiyohei casually explained the process. "Actually, I was still losing 400,000 yen until the last round. Then, I suggested a final showdown, and the other person agreed. We gambled one last time, and I won, recovering all the money I had lost."

"Is it that simple?" Mary blinked her eyes in disbelief, finding Kiyohei's explanation too easy-going.

"Gambling is simple by nature. Maybe you're overcomplicating things?" Kiyohei shrugged. "As long as there are no issues with the game, the only factors that can influence the outcome are luck and cheating."

"Cheating..." Mary silently repeated the word, then her eyes brightened. "Kiyohei, are you saying that the person I gambled against might have cheated?"

"I don't know about your situation, but the person I gambled against definitely cheated. Because he cheated, he arrogantly believed he had a high chance of winning, so he accepted my proposition for a gamble, thinking it would be easy money for him," Kiyohei humbly said. "He didn't expect my luck to be slightly better and for me to win against him."

The more Mary thought about it, the more it felt wrong. During the gambling session, that person seemed to understand her thoughts as if she could read her mind, consistently outplaying her.

She had considered the possibility of cheating during the gambling, but she had no evidence, and the other person kept urging her to make a move, leaving her with very little time to think.

Now, thinking about it, Kokoro did indeed have issues. Gambling, in essence, is a game of luck, and her intelligence isn't superior to Mary's. How could she accurately predict the cards Mary would play?

"That's right... Kokoro must have cheated; otherwise, she wouldn't have won so many consecutive rounds!"

That person was such a scoundrel, actually cheating! Mary no longer held any grudge against Tsuzura and directed all her resentment towards Kokoro.

"Mary, have you thought about winning the money back?" Kiyohei suddenly asked.

"I do want to win it back, but I don't have the capital," Mary said, dejectedly leaning against the wall.

She knew that if she lost, she just needed to win it back. But she didn't have any money at hand, so even if she was angry, it was just impotent rage.

"In that case, do you want me to lend you the money?"

"You want to lend me money?" Mary looked at Kiyohei in surprise.

"Don't you want to win?" Kiyohei looked at Mary's golden eyes, filled with frustration, as if he could sense the feeling of unwillingness within her. "Do you want to reclaim your honor?"

Mary felt like Kiyohei could see through her. Yes, she really wanted to win. She wanted to teach Kokoro a lesson with a decisive victory and mock her loudly!

"Why do you want to lend me money?" Mary looked at Kiyohei in confusion. "You're not trying to see me become a gambling addict and accumulate massive debts, are you?"

"It's just because we're in the same boat, after all. Both of us are transfer students, and I can't just stand by and watch you get bullied. Besides, aren't we friends? Friends will always lend a helping hand," Kiyohei smiled.

Friends... Mary realized that Kiyohei already considered her a friend. After experiencing the bitter taste of icy failure, Mary finally gained a sense of strength from Kiyohei's words, feeling a warm current flowing through her body.

"Do you have a lot of money?"

"My father gave me a sum of money before he left," Kiyohei showed his wallet, feeling somewhat sentimental. He initially thought his father gave him an extra allowance for romance, but it turned out to be a safety net for survival.

If he had to gamble every day and pay monthly contributions, the money his father gave him wouldn't last long.