"If you do it well ■■■■■, then after ■■■■, you ■■■■■■ it."
"Then you ■■■■■■ the ■■■■■■■ and dunk it in the ■■■■."
"And finally..."
...
What kind of thoughts does a person have to live with for words like that to come out of their mouth?
The organization members who had been dealing with us until just now had their eyes sparkling in a way that did not suit them at all, and some of them were even taking notes on Ryoshu's words.
But this kind of talk probably wouldn't be good for kids like Sinclair.
With a little worry, I looked around, and fortunately Sinclair's mental shock had been prevented by Rodion covering his ears.
"I just felt a little impressed there."
"Wow, she really twisted it there... what is that, some kind of magic of the tongue?"
"No. That's the devil's mouth."
Even Heathcliff, who looked like he'd lived the filthiest life here, was shuddering in the middle of it all.
"I cannot help but call it creative. Indeed, the pen... no, the tongue is mightier than the sword."
"I've got some experience with rough talk from my time at sea, so I thought I was pretty used to it..."
"I've realized it. The world I knew was only the tip of the iceberg."
The prisoners each added a comment of their own.
Hmm... I should probably keep a little distance from Ryoshu. If I stay too close, I might catch it.
Watching us, Sword spoke in a slightly sentimental tone.
"..."
"I never did understand what they were thinking when they gathered all of you up there."
Faust added an explanation to Sword's words.
"They probably weren't planning it with understanding in mind."
Sword ignored her and went on.
"I still don't fully understand it, but..."
"This way too... isn't bad."
"Sword, it seems you've finally accepted it. Congratulations."
...Faust, is that really something to congratulate her on?
In any case, the battle ended thanks to Ryoshu's dazzling tongue work, and we hurried our feet to head for the top floor.
When we reached the top floor, Dante spoke in a worried tone.
"This is bad. We've made it to the top floor, but the wish power itself is..."
"Ah~ don't worry. I was getting itchy to say this anyway, and now it's finally here."
"Actually, I swiped some wish power from the pawnshop earlier. It's a little short, but this should be enough, right?"
As Rodion said that, a wish sticker with only one corner left fluttered in her hand.
Seeing that, Sword's expression cracked a little as she asked Rodion in a slightly heated tone.
"Why didn't you say so sooner?"
"Gambling's supposed to be about keeping a poker face. If you tip your hand and get found out, it becomes a pain."
"Can I borrow the captain role for a moment, Dante?"
Dante nodded at Rodion's words.
So by captain role, does that mean she's going to step in directly for the gambling?
Given that Rodion was the one most used to gambling among us, having her take the lead might actually be for the best.
Well, it's not like Dante had been doing a particularly good job as captain anyway.
"...If this were earlier, I would've opposed it with everything I had. Still..."
"Good thinking. I've never lost in my life when money was on the line."
...Shouldn't you have at least listened to the rest, Rodion?
Sword's gentle expression faltered a little, but Rodion cleanly ignored it and stepped into the top-floor gambling room, saying,
"Now then..."
"Players, enter~"
We opened the door just a crack and peered inside, half worried and half curious.
"What, are they not all here yet? I wanted to make a grand entrance."
As Rodion said, there were only three people inside, Rodion included.
The plan sheet, which had now become little more than scrap paper, clearly said that four people, including our representative, would be gambling.
When a stranger suddenly appeared, a woman wearing a Mexican poncho hat asked with a puzzled expression.
With that outfit... was she from the same organization as the people on the second floor?
"And you are...?"
"My name is Rodion. I came to gamble for the right to go down to the basement here."
"Pffft!"
Why is she laughing?
"I was just about to meet the boss of the Kongkongi Gang, famous for stealing wish power, and you waltz in here looking way too confident for someone whose identity isn't even certain?"
"How old-fashioned~ What matters in this world isn't identity, is it? It's who the winner is."
"Well, that's true. Just making it here means you're qualified enough."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Aid."
"And this one is..."
"Oh dear, Ssakshin."
A full-body prosthesis?
Following the sudden mechanical voice, I glanced over and saw someone wearing an old full-body prosthesis, the kind you rarely see these days.
"...A robot? No, a prosthesis...?"
"What are you staring at? Never seen a full mechanical prosthesis before?"
"Isn't this way too... old a model? It looks like it should be in a museum."
"Old things are good things. I've patched it up so many times it's sturdier than most new models."
"More importantly, why isn't that one coming? What kind of forgetful bastard shows up late to an important appointment?"
The moment someone in the old prosthesis said that, a handsome voice came from somewhere.
"Sorry. Something came up."
"?!"
Rodion seemed startled, but...
Wait, everyone, move aside. I can't see.
Pushing through the prisoners to get a look, the owner of that unfamiliar voice turned out to be a rather handsome man.
His unreal white hair and blue eyes stood out enough to draw attention anywhere.
"Sonya, do you have some kind of main-character syndrome? Like, you only feel satisfied if you show up late and steal everyone's attention?"
According to the woman in the poncho hat, Aid, the mysterious man's name seemed to be Sonya.
"Haha, not at all. The protagonist is always Aid."
"..."
Judging by how intense Rodion's reaction was, it seemed she knew him already.
Ex-boyfriend?
"Long time no see, Rodion."
"What? You two know each other?"
"Childhood friends... I suppose you could say that. Right, Rodion?"
So even childhood friends?
Oh my, oh my. What kind of relationship do those two have?
"You... you're still the leader of Yurodivy, right?"
"Well, if you say still... you were the only one who ran off, after all."
It seemed the man named Sonya was the leader of the organization Yurodivy that we'd heard about at the pawnshop.
And Yurodivy seemed to be a group Rodion was also connected to.
Just as their past was about to come up further, the woman named Aid stepped in to smooth out the atmosphere.
"Alright, alright, enough with the side stories. Everyone who's coming is here, so let's review the rules one more time."
"These four with simultaneous casino bidding rights—Sonya, Aid, the Ironworks, and... the suspicious but confident proxy of the Kongkongi Gang boss..."
"No tricks of any kind are allowed during the game. The moment you're caught, you're out."
"And of course, you can't use any item related to wish power."
"If you get caught, I'll chop you into pieces! That's a proper warning, y'hear!"
From the situation, the person in that full-body prosthesis was probably the Ironworks boss.
That aside, if any trickery gets you disqualified the moment it's caught... that sounds like it just means you only have to avoid getting found out until the end.
"..."
Rodion seemed to have had the same thought, letting out a low groan.
"There will be a total of three games, and the one who wins the most chips takes it. Simple, right?"
"The winner gets to take the elevator here down to the basement where the Golden Bough is."
"That Golden Bough the previous casino owner was digging like a madman to get all the way down here."
"He suddenly dropped dead for some unknown reason, so we 'luckily' became joint bidders..."
"...That's a very elegant way to say he died with something shady on his back."
"Haha, Rodion. You're still going around sneering like that?"
Wow, what an obnoxious way of speaking.
He had that vaguely righteous tone that somehow still felt rotten underneath.
"...Shut up. But how does everyone know about the Golden Bough? I didn't realize it was such a widely known item."
"It was a rumor known among the named organizations. If you obtained the Golden Bough buried here... you could have all the wealth and honor in the world."
"Come to think of it, I didn't know you were interested in wealth and honor? Sonya, I thought you were supposed to stay away from that sort of thing."
"The Golden Bough can do something greater, Rodion. My purpose then and now has always been the same. To break oppression and exploitation, and to guard against the accumulation of wealth..."
As the man named Sonya went on and on, the slightly awkward, autotuned mechanical voice sounded again.
"Zha, zha's starting with the hard words again. Somebody stop him."
"Sorry. It just brings back old memories."
After apologizing to the Ironworks boss, Sonya looked at Rodion and said,
"It's funny. You used to be hopeless when it came to gambling and money, and I was always the one trying to stop you."
"Now we've become people who hide our cards while betting on each other's goals."
"What's your goal?"
"...Winning."
"...I see."
After Sonya gave that short answer, the conversation fell silent, and Aid stepped in to settle the mood.
And then... the game that would decide our fate began.