Meari's face showed unwillingness, and she whispered, "If I lose, I'll borrow money from Ayanokoji to repay this debt!"
Kurume had spent so many days with Ayanokoji Kiyotaka that she felt she understood him somewhat. Although he wasn't averse to gambling, he seemed to dislike "gambling addicts" and disliked people borrowing money to gamble.
If she lent money to Meari, it would, of course, be a good thing if she won. If she lost, even if Ayanokoji Kiyotaka lent her money, he would develop an aversion to her, and his favorability would decrease.
Don't say Kurume was too scheming; love is war! She and Meari were still competitors; it was already good enough that she didn't slander her. Should she really go all out to improve Meari's standing in Ayanokoji's heart?
She was no saint!
Besides, Ayanokoji didn't care about a few million. Even if Meari suffered a crushing defeat and went back shamefully to borrow money from him, he would probably just stare at Meari speechlessly for a while, lecture her severely, and then give her a sum of money to repay the gambling debt.
Thinking of this, Kurume no longer hesitated.
"Meari, how much money do you want to borrow?"
"One million." Meari clenched her fists.
Meari wanted to bet that much? Kurume was a little surprised but still handed the money to Meari.
This money was the bonus Ayanokoji had given her.
Meari took the money and suddenly asked, "Before I go in, let me ask one thing: is Ruricho Nadeshiko really an Absolute Pitch?"
"This answer will affect your gamble, so I refuse to answer." Kurume Laiwei said.
Meari frowned slightly. Although Kurume didn't answer directly, her attitude had already made it clear.
Sure enough... Ruricho Nadeshiko cheated.
If she cheated, she cheated. Why did she have to use "Absolute Pitch" as an excuse? Couldn't she find a more normal one!
And for a moment, she actually believed it. This person actually treated her like a fool and tricked her!
Meari was indignant; she had to vent this anger!
Meari pushed the door open furiously and re-entered the music classroom. Ruricho Nadeshiko had not yet left the gambling table.
"Meari, you haven't left yet?" Ruricho Nadeshiko raised an eyebrow and laughed loudly, "You're not thinking of gambling with me again, are you?"
"That's right, let's gamble again!" Meari sat opposite her and slapped the money on the table, "This time the stake is 100,000. Do you dare to bet?"
Kurume, who had just entered and heard Meari say this, was startled for a moment, then a look of admiration appeared in her eyes.
Meari had borrowed one million from her, but in the first round, she only staked one hundred thousand. It seemed her head hadn't lost reason due to anger.
"If you're willing, of course, I'm willing to accept your challenge."
As Ruricho Nadeshiko said this with a laugh, her gaze not only went to Kurume Laiwei. She only felt settled after seeing Kurume nod slightly.
Since Kurume agreed for her to continue gambling with Meari, she would drain all the money from her hands!
Ruricho Nadeshiko was confident that she would win.
Cheating? Of course.
In this school, those who don't cheat are a minority.
Even Kurume Laiwei didn't know how she cheated. She didn't believe Meari could expose the gamble and win just by going out and coming back.
"Meari, this time, you still go first and put in the coins." Ruricho Nadeshiko said with a smile.
Meari looked at the box full of coins and didn't reach out directly to grab them. Instead, she suddenly said, "I have a suggestion. You said you determined the number of coins by 'Absolute Pitch,' but I don't believe it. I think you must have cheated."
"Saying someone cheated requires evidence, you know..."
"I know." Meari interrupted her, "I have a suggestion. If you put in the coins second and manage to balance the scale, then I'll give you 500,000. But if you can't do that, you'll have to give me 500,000."
"Oh? Are you trying to change the rules of the game?" Ruricho Nadeshiko looked at her playfully.
"This is an additional rule in the formal gamble; the original rules still apply. What do you say, are you willing to accept the proposal?"
Meari looked directly at Ruricho Nadeshiko and deliberately provoked, "Or, do you actually not know the number of coins, and your 'Absolute Pitch' is fake?"
"Since you want to send me money, why wouldn't I agree?" Ruricho Nadeshiko burst out laughing.
"Alright, I've already filled mine. Next, it's your turn to balance the scale." Meari closed the lid of her coin bank and placed it next to the scale.
Although she had accepted a challenge, Ruricho Nadeshiko was all smiles, as if this challenge was nothing to her. She glanced at her watch and very casually put money into the coin bank.
A minute later, both their coin banks were on the scale—the scale was balanced.
"Meari, how about it?"
Ruricho Nadeshiko looked at Meari with a look of pity, like a victor, "I clearly warned you before, but you still weren't convinced. Now, you owe me another 500,000."
"It's not over yet, is it? Now you should guess how many coins I have." Meari's expression remained calm.
"15 coins, right?" Ruricho Nadeshiko smiled confidently.
Kurume saw Meari's silent expression and knew that Ruricho Nadeshiko had guessed correctly. She sighed slightly, "Meari, it's your turn to answer now."
"No, I won't answer this round." Meari shook her head and poured out the money from the coin bank.
Not too much, not too little, 15 coins.
Ruricho Nadeshiko answered correctly.
"Now you owe me a total of one million." Ruricho Nadeshiko deliberately made a sympathetic gesture and held out her hand, "I gave you a chance, but you insisted on continuing to gamble with me... Alright, give me the money now."
"...It's not over yet." Meari said softly, "Let's gamble one more round."
Ruricho Nadeshiko actually knew Meari's thoughts. She didn't believe Ruribird had Absolute Pitch, so she assumed Ruribird was using some method to cheat, thinking that if she gambled a few more times, she would be able to find out Ruribird's cheating method.
However, to Meari's surprise, Ruricho Nadeshiko suddenly smiled and shook her head, "Let's just stop here. After all, we are both Kurume's friends, and it wouldn't be good if things got too tense, right?"
If they continued to gamble, although the probability was small, Meari might detect her cheating method.
It was better to be cautious and stop gambling now. In that case, Kurume should also be happy to accept it.
Ruricho Nadeshiko applauded her own choice; she was truly too smart!
With such high emotional intelligence and IQ, she would definitely become a charmer in the future, right?
"...This round, we'll bet 1 million." Meari suddenly spoke.
"Hey, Meari, are you serious? Where do you have any money now!?" Kurume exclaimed.
She had just borrowed one million yen from her and had already lost it all in this round. Where did she have any money now?
"I can owe you." Meari looked at Ruricho Nadeshiko, her voice seemingly carrying a seductive quality, "Let's gamble one last round. The maximum stake is 6 million. Are you willing to gamble with me?"
In the previous moment, when Meari had won 1.8 million and was about to withdraw, she was tempted by Ruribird's 500,000-per-round stake.
At this moment, when Ruribird had won 2.8 million and was about to stop, Meari, just like Ruribird before her, proposed a 1-million-per-round stake.
At this moment, it was like that moment.
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