"Rinji-kun, what you've been doing these past few days is really over the line."
Rinji: "..."
Standing in front of Rinji was Jabami Yuko with puffed cheeks.
"It's because of what you did at school that no one wanted to gamble with before the election started."
"Not my problem."
Yuko was a girl addicted to gambling, the kind who couldn't stand a day without it.
Even though she had been set up by the student council and fell into debt, becoming a "house pet," Yuko had never felt more thrilled and excited.
In her eyes, gambles with real stakes and consequences were the most exhilarating.
But just when she was enjoying being part of Hyakkaou Private Academy, where gambling reigned supre, Rinji's arrival shattered that joy.
Until the election began, the school's gambling spirit was dampened by Rinji's maneuvers in the Anti-Gambling Club, leaving Yuko with almost no one willing to gamble with her.
First, her status as a house pet raised suspicions that she was associated with the Anti-Gambling Club. Her eagerness to gamble only made others wary.
As a result, Yuko hadn't gambled in nearly two weeks.
"Why not use this opportunity to quit gambling?"
"No way. Gambling's way too fun."
"Fun, huh? Then when are you going to pay back the money you owe ?" Rinji asked bluntly. "If you don't pay up, I'll have to sell you and your bedridden sister."
"You're a heartless man. But fine, it's because you're heartless that gambling gets even more interesting."
Yuko grinned and pulled a bankbook from her pocket.
It showed a balance of 1 billion yen.
"...When did you get this much? Weren't you in debt by 300 million before?"
"Thanks to this election. Once students were allowed to gamble using votes, so even started using cash. Even though I'm a house pet, I still had one vote as a student of Hyakkaou. Bit by bit..."
"You bled them dry, huh? Not bad."
Rinji realized he had underestimated Yuko. He thought she was just a brain-dead gambling addict, but she actually had so skill.
"I'll transfer the money to you. Now then..."
Yuko's face flushed, her tone brimming with excitent.
"Let's gamble again..."
"I refuse."
"Eh!?"
"I'm not in the mood to play with you. Just pay back. Whether you live or die has nothing to do with ."
"That's cold."
"Shut up. If I hadn't created the Anti-Gambling Club to challenge Kirari Momobami, soone like you would've been eliminated first."
He said this, glancing at the vote in Yuko's hand.
"How many votes do you have now?"
"Thirteen. Why? Interested in gambling with ?"
"Nope."
Rinji pulled out a sack of votes and waved it in front of Yuko.
"I have 170 votes. And I have no intention of becoming student council president."
Indeed, Rinji never planned to beco president. His reason for collecting votes was simply to let the Anti-Gambling Club interfere in the election.
Not only did Rinji hold 170 votes, but Manyuda also won 90 more today.
Together, their 260 votes surpassed Kirari's total.
Adding to that, Rinji had caused an entire class to withdraw, aning those 260 votes now approached a majority.
In other words, if Manyuda deliberately handed over his votes to Rinji, Rinji would be the next president.
But Rinji had no such desire. He didn't care who sat in that seat. His goal was rely to pressure Kirari Momobami.
However, just because Rinji didn't want to beco president didn't an others knew his intentions.
---
"What should we do in this situation?"
"Terano, given the current situation, it looks like Takamine Rinji is going to win the election."
"The next head of the Momobami Clan won't even be one of our own, or even Japanese."
mbers of the Momobami Clan were gathered in a hall, discussing their next move.
Each family had sent representatives with real strength—at a level far beyond that of ordinary students. In this election, several of them had already secured a large number of votes through consistent wins.
Though they weren't united—their top priority being their own claim to the clan head position, constantly scheming against each other—Rinji's sudden rise had completely blindsided them.
It wasn't that they underestimated his strength. They simply didn't expect him to be interested in the position at all.
Despite that, Terano remained perfectly calm.
"Don't worry. I see no desire for the president's seat in his eyes. This is nothing more than the result of him acting on a whim."
"Even if it's on a whim, the fact remains that he has a massive number of votes in hand."
The always squinting boy, Obami Rin, frowned as he spoke.
According to their intelligence, both Manyuda Kaede and Takamine Rinji belonged to the Anti-Gambling Club. aning, their votes could essentially be counted as one.
"Right now, so votes are with Kirari, and the rest are with Takamine Rinji. Together, they account for 80% of the school's total votes. Even if we seized every remaining student vote, the presidency would still be out of our reach."
"I know what you're trying to say."
Terano interrupted Rin before he could finish.
"Even if we challenge Kirari to a gamble, we must never go after Takamine Rinji. That's the most rational decision I can make."
"If we're not going after him, then we just need to target that guy nad Manyuda."
Beside them, the black-haired girl with eyeshadow, Inbami Miyo, spoke with a smile.
"...He's one of Takamine Rinji's people. If we move against him, then..."
"Soone has to do it." Miyo smile vanished, her face darkening. "You know full well, the head of the clan must never fall into Kirari's hands—much less be handed over to an outsider."
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