80 - Win or lose? Seek death? Victory belongs to the mad gambler!
What... What nonsense is this?
What kind of perception ability is this?!
Ikishima Midari's single eye was filled with shock. As a seasoned expert who had been handling guns for years, she could naturally sense the feeling when a bullet was loaded into a gun.
She could even tell which bullet in the magazine had been loaded.
But how could Yumeko, a woman who had only recently been introduced to firearms, do this?
This isn't good...
If that's the case, wouldn't my ultimate pleasure become an unattainable reality forever?
This is something I can never accept!
Just as Ikishima Midari sank into despair.
Under Hikigaya's shocked gaze, Jabami Yumeko slowly loaded six bullets into the magazine.
Her movements were practiced, her gaze cold, as she stared silently at Ikishima Midari.
"Ikishima, since you like doing such boring things so much, I'll satisfy you."
"This time, I'll load two bullets."
"In other words, this round of the game will no longer have a situation where one side is guaranteed to be safe."
A sickly flush once again appeared on Ikishima Midari's face, and she pointed at Yumeko, letting out a delighted laugh: "You're amazing, Yumeko. I misunderstood you. I thought you were my kind, someone who enjoys risks for pleasure."
"No, wait. You're the one who extracts the pleasure. You're the abuser, the super sadist... You're someone like the president."
"You're such a blatant pervert. But I like it! Since you loaded two bullets, I'll load two as well!"
The two synchronized their actions and threw their guns under the table.
Then, Ikishima Midari dialed the phone next door: "Reverse the camera."
.
.
.
The beauty committee member's lips curled slightly as she pressed the remote control in her hand. The image on the monitor twisted, and their seats reversed, along with the changes in the arrangement on their desk.
They couldn't wait to watch Hikigaya's panic-stricken, angry expression. They were looking forward to seeing his face when his girlfriend's life was threatened.
This kind of blatant cheating, with them being powerless to stop it, was the ultimate pleasure for them.
Then, they would take advantage of the situation and defile Hikigaya mercilessly. The surveillance in the monitoring room would record everything. Later, they would use this footage to blackmail Hikigaya, extorting a silencing fee. This tactic had worked every time.
They exchanged a knowing glance, understanding the deep meaning in each other's eyes.
They loved the idea of being separated by just a thin wall, with only a single wall between them—feeling so powerful!
"Hey, Hikigaya, your girlfriend is about to be ruined by Ikishima-senpai~"
"You must be out of options now~ No matter how much chemistry you have, if the display is messed up, you can't do anything, right?"
"If you kneel down and lick our feet right now, we might let you go~"
The beauty committee member who spoke, imagining Hikigaya, the cold and aloof guy, kneeling in front of them and humiliating himself to save his girlfriend, couldn't help but blush, overwhelmed by excitement.
But soon, Hikigaya's reaction disappointed them.
His calm face showed no hint of fear. Instead, he wore a chilling smile.
Hikigaya Hikigaya smiled a half-smile, with a flicker of red in his eyes: "Jabami, are you testing the chemistry between us? You really went to great lengths to drag me into your mad gambling abyss. You've worked hard."
He toyed with the ESP card in his hand and slowly replied: "Why does each of you want me to lick your feet... It's a sick value system."
"By the way, you guys are pretty pathetic."
"Huh?"
"You don't even understand what Ikishima is after, and you've been tricked by her all along. You think we wouldn't notice such a simple way of cheating?"
"What the hell are you talking about?!"
"You don't know, do you? Jabami is right-handed."
Hachiman Hikigaya slammed his hand down with conviction: "Now, place your cards!"
At this moment, Hachiman didn't notice that the door to the surveillance room behind him had slowly opened. A pair of greedy eyes were watching him from behind.
...
"Hikigaya-kun, you're right-handed~"
"From the first time we greeted each other, we confirmed it."
"The display showed that Hikigaya-kun was using his left hand to greet me, and in the second round, he placed the cards with his left hand."
"The key point is this [Wave] card."
Jabami Yumeko's voice became even colder, her serpent-like eyes glimmering with flickering red light as she stared at Ikishima Midari, whose true appearance was now fully revealed.
Her index and middle fingers pressed down on the [Wave] card. "Only this card, when reversed, shows the direction of the wave clearly and can be instantly identified."
"All the clues point to the final conclusion: the images we see are mirrored and reversed."
"But with that, it's strange that Hikigaya-kun could replicate my arrangement. This means that our positions were reversed from the start."
"What both sides are seeing is the flipped image."
"This kind of childish cheating. How could it fool anyone? To deceive me and Hikigaya-kun, there has to be a limit."
On the monitor.
Hachiman Hikigaya slowly spread his arrangement with his right hand.
[Cross, Square, Wave, Circle, Star]
Jabami Yumeko simply glanced at it: "Hikigaya-kun's arrangement is exactly what I expected."
The interrogation room fell into a deathly silence.
Ikishima Midari looked at Jabami Yumeko with some awe in her single eye, cold sweat dripping down her forehead. Her cheating technique had been completely exposed, laid bare by Jabami Yumeko without holding anything back.
To be honest, she wasn't very good at gambling. Her knowledge of cheating techniques was just superficial. She wasn't inherently skilled at gambling, and it was easy for someone like Jabami Yumeko to find a surefire method.
'As expected, I'm no match for these two first-year students!'
Ikishima Midari gritted her teeth, her whole body trembling with fear, as if she were resisting the terror of being shot.
But—
She slowly stuck out her tongue, a misty vapor surrounding her.
The mist in her eyes could no longer be held back, flowing out uncontrollably.
'You've lost, Yumeko~'
'I don't care about winning or losing the game! What I want is to achieve my goal!'
'As long as I can be shot, feel the pain, and ascend to heaven, this game will be my victory!'
'Victory belongs to me, Ikishima Midari!'
Ikishima Midari revealed her arrangement.
[Wave, Cross, Circle, Star, Square]
She faced Jabami Yumeko, spreading her arms wide and closing her eyes, feeling the deathly air that permeated the atmosphere.
This was her gamble!
Her answer was completely wrong!
"I can't take it anymore, Yumeko! Hurry up and reveal your answer! I've been looking for a replacement for the president, a woman like her, a woman who can give me pain! Yumeko, you're the perfect one!"
"You placed your cards the same way as last round, right? You must have gotten everything right! If you shoot me five times, you're sure to hit me!"
"Hurry, Yumeko! Reveal your cards! Then kill me!"