Three days later.
Valerius once again pushed his little cart to Room No. 1.
[Barbara]: Nervous…
[Lynette]: This is exciting.
He knocked and entered.
The moment Jean and Kuki Shinobu saw Valerius pushing another box inside, their expressions instantly turned conflicted.
Stopping in front of them, Valerius first glanced at their faces before smiling.
"Pay attention—this trade is special."
"Special?"
"Yes. This time, you don't need to reach a consensus. You can each buy your own."
His gaze shifted to Jean.
"And… your reward this time was chosen by Barbara."
"Barbara?!"
Jean froze.
So this reward was chosen by Barbara?
Almost instantly, Jean made up her mind.
She would buy it.
Barbara would never sabotage her.
"How many points?"
"Still three."
"Alright. I'm buying."
This time, Jean didn't hesitate at all.
[Herta]: As expected. Knew this was Valerius's scheme.
[Jing Yuan]: He conveniently never mentioned the reward was random.
[Lisa]: For some reason… I'm really looking forward to Jean getting tricked.
[Barbara]: Lisa???
After completing the trade with Jean, Valerius turned to Kuki Shinobu.
"And you? Buying or not?"
"Who picked my reward?"
"…Don't tell me it was Boss."
"It was."
Her mood instantly soured.
Who knew what that unreliable idiot would come up with?
"…Sigh. I'll try."
She had already made up her mind.
If Arataki Itto screwed her over, she would immediately quit the Arataki Gang when she got back.
As for where she'd go? She had plenty of options.
Kujou Sara had invited her to join the Tenryou Commission more than once.
Worst case, she could even become a shrine maiden.
With both trades completed, Valerius handed each of them a box.
"Go on, open them. This is your support teams' heartfelt contribution."
"Alright."
Since Barbara had chosen hers, Jean opened her box without hesitation.
Inside lay a single card.
[Meal Upgrade Card: All future meals upgraded by one tier]
"…Ah."
Jean froze.
Three points… for this?
Wasn't this worth only one point before?
Her heart sank.
Barbara… in your heart, do you really think your sister can't endure hardship at all?
"Th-this… isn't bad. I really like the reward Barbara picked."
Even if she had to force a smile, Jean still had to act satisfied.
After all, that was her little sister.
But inside, her heart was bleeding.
[Barbara]: Waaaah—Sister, I'm sorry!!
Seeing Jean's reward, Kuki Shinobu immediately regretted her decision.
If Barbara's result was already this tragic, what on earth had Boss picked for her?
She didn't even dare imagine it.
Trembling slightly, she opened her box.
A familiar object immediately popped out.
Kuki Shinobu: "!!!!!!!!"
Jean: "???????"
What in the world was going on?!
Jean was stunned.
Why was her reward a meal upgrade—
while Shinobu's was the lottery machine?!
This was unfair. Completely unfair.
"Th-this… is the lottery machine? Boss picked this?"
Shinobu rubbed her eyes hard.
No matter how she looked at it, she couldn't believe Itto had actually pulled something like this.
At the same time, she was confused.
If something like this existed, why hadn't Barbara picked it?
Were these rewards also randomly drawn?
"Mr. Valerius… this was drawn by Boss?"
"Yes."
Valerius nodded, impressed.
These people were quick to catch on.
"I see…"
Jean finally understood.
It wasn't that her sister didn't choose the lottery machine—
she simply hadn't drawn it.
"Heh… looks like Boss's luck isn't half bad."
At this moment, Shinobu was in an incredible mood.
Itto was usually unreliable in every sense of the word—
but this time, he had actually come through in a big way.
[Arataki Itto]: Wahahaha! See that?! SEE THAT?!
[Thoma]: That's impressive!!!
[Raiden Ei]: Very good. Worthy of praise.
[Yae Miko]: This doesn't make sense… since when did that street delinquent have this kind of luck?
[Silver Wolf]: @Arataki Itto Hey… which number did you pick?
[Arataki Itto]: Heh. I'm not telling.
[Robin]: ...
[Lynx]: ...…
[Kamisato Ayaka]: ...…
[Herta]: Looks like… Valerius really doesn't tamper with the results.
[Bronya]: Mr. Valerius was never that kind of person.
[Seele]: How do you know?
[Bronya]: I just do.
[Natasha]: Heh… I agree. Mr. Valerius wouldn't stoop to cheap tricks.
"Haaah—!"
After calming herself, Shinobu stepped up to the lottery machine.
"Is this the same one as before?"
"Exactly the same. This one draws rewards worth at least five points."
Getting the answer she wanted, Shinobu reached out.
Under Jean's envious gaze, she pulled the lever.
Click—clack.
An item dropped out.
Shinobu snatched it up immediately.
It was a sphere glowing with a milky-white halo.
Dark streaks slithered across its surface, resembling serpents.
"What is this?"
Shinobu couldn't tell what it was, so she could only ask Valerius.
"Not bad. It's a mystic treasure worth six points."
"A… mystic treasure?"
...
!
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