Mash-up Anime World: Creating the SCP Foundation to Contain Anomalies Chapter 105: Haruto: Wipe That Drool Off Your Face!

"You really are a monster."

Saoto buried her head in her golden twin tails, refusing to face reality.

A student council mber with an undefeated record in card gas. To her, such a person was soone to fear and avoid at all costs. But to Haruto, they were just another walking ATM.

Looking at her reaction, Haruto suddenly smiled.

Sohow, this girl... was kind of cute?

There were many talented people in the world, as countless as the stars in the sky.

But most of them would never beco the brightest star.

When talented people failed to reach the top, nine out of ten would drown in their own disappointnt.

After all, people who had talent but didn't blindly believe in it—who could acknowledge their own limitations—were rare.

And Saoto was one of those rare few.

She had talent. Even after repeated defeats, she didn't drown in despair but instead accepted reality.

That was admirable.

And perhaps, she was also quite lucky?

That golden twin tail hairstyle gave Haruto a strong impression of a golden-haired defeated dog.

"Yuko, help Saoto out a bit from now on."

Haruto suddenly said.

Yuko was briefly surprised, but then she nodded.

"Alright."

Saoto raised her head in a daze, looking at Haruto in confusion.

"Why?"

She didn't believe Haruto was soone who helped others out of pity.

"I just think it'll be interesting."

Haruto waved his hand dismissively.

At that mont, class was about to begin.

Haruto and Yuko turned back to face the front, leaving Saoto still lost in thought.

"Master is really kind."

Yuko covered her mouth with a book and whispered.

"I just think it'll be interesting," Haruto repeated.

"Then, if I do sothing interesting for you, do I get a reward?"

Yuko asked with a sly smile.

This woman, after losing to Haruto, quickly figured out Haruto's personality. She understood that this kind of small, gradual overreach wouldn't be disliked.

"Next ti we have a bet, go easy on a little."

Haruto said this.

"Wow, that's an amazing reward! Yuko is really looking forward to it!"

For Yuko, she loved all-out gambling, the thrill of both sides going all in. But when it ca to Haruto, she hoped he would go easy on her.

After all, if he didn't, she couldn't see any chance of winning.

Yuko also disliked gambling where the outco was either guaranteed victory or inevitable defeat.

Class ti quickly passed.

Haruto yawned.

As one of the Three Great Academies, Hyakkaou Academy's education was also of an extrely high level. Although it was known for gambling, everyone took their studies seriously.

After all, knowledge and intellect were also part of gambling skills. Unfortunately, this knowledge was too simple for Haruto.

"Let's go, we shouldn't waste Suragi's kind invitation."

Haruto said this.

Saoto rolled her eyes.

What the hell kind of "kind invitation" was this?

But still, she followed Haruto and Yuko to the activity room.

The so-called activity room was actually an entire floor of the school building. There were nurous card tables, lounge areas, and even closed-circuit TVs and spectator seats for broadcasting.

It looked exactly like a casino.

As soon as the three of them stepped into the room, soone quickly approached.

It was a petite and adorable girl with short, fluffy yellow hair that curled slightly at the ends.

She wore the Hyakkaou girls' uniform, her legs wrapped in black thigh-high socks with cute patterns on them.

"Haruto! Did you see my invitation letter? Oh! I forgot to introduce myself—I'm Itsuki Suragi!"

Itsuki flashed a cute smile.

Haruto wanted to smile back.

But...

Why was this girl staring at his hands so intensely?

Haruto instinctively looked at his own hands, wondering if sothing had stuck to them. But as soon as he raised them, her gaze beca even more obvious.

Her face even began to flush strangely, and her eyes seed dazed.

"Itsuki, did you drink computer parts or sothing?"

Haruto asked curiously.

"Uh... no." Itsuki snapped back to reality and patted her cheeks. "Sorry, Haruto, you're just too perfect. I got a little srized."

Haruto: ...Uh.

Perfect was indeed a fitting description of Haruto.

As the host of the Blacklight Virus, Haruto was evolving toward perfection. Every part of his body, by human standards, was absolutely flawless.

So being admired was understandable.

But he hadn't expected her obsession to be this intense.

Taking out the letter, Haruto waved it slightly.

"I received your invitation, so I ca to gamble."

Itsuki nodded excitedly.

"Because Haruto is so famous... slurp... I thought gambling with you would be fun."

Haruto facepald.

Girl, could you be a little more restrained?!

Your drool is literally dripping!

Where's your dignity as a high-class lady?!

Then, Itsuki led Haruto to a card table—this was the main table, with a cara set up for live broadcasting.

Yuko and Saoto were seated in the audience.

"So, for the type of gambling... how about playing Double Concentration?"

Hiko placed two decks of cards on the table and smiled.

Double Concentration was essentially a matching card ga. The cards were laid face down, and players took turns flipping over two at a ti.

If the two cards matched, the player could continue flipping.

The "double" part ca from using two decks of cards. Only when the rank and suit of the two flipped cards matched would it count as a successful pair.

A standard deck had 54 cards, excluding the two Jokers, leaving 52.

With two decks, that made 104 cards.

The first to successfully match 54 pairs (more than half) would win.

Haruto casually nodded.

Itsuki smiled and took out two unopened decks, first holding them up to the cara.

"These are playing cards made by my family's company! They have an amazing feel, please support us!"

As the heiress of a major toy company, Itsuki was advertising.

"This girl... she's seriously promoting her cards?"

Saoto muttered.

Yuko just smiled knowingly.

The decks were unsealed, shuffled, and spread out chaotically on the table.

"So, Haruto, about the stakes..."

Hiko once again showed an intense expression.

"How about 16 million?"

Haruto asked.

"Eh, that's a bit low."

Hiko pretended to hesitate.

Haruto sighed helplessly.

Not because his bet was being looked down on, but because...

Did this girl not know about his agreent with the student council?

Did the student council not even consider her a real mber?

"Uh... how about this? Haruto, bet one of your fingernails, let's say it's worth 14 million?"

Itsuki tested the waters.

She was just too tempted.

Normally, she would never suggest bodily stakes right away, it would scare people off. But after watching footage of Haruto, Itsuki knew he wasn't the type to back down.

And she couldn't suppress her desire any longer.

Haruto was just too perfect!

She had to have it!

"My fingernail is worth that much?"

Haruto muttered before nodding in agreent.

"Then let's begin! Double Concentration!" Itsuki said excitedly. "Haruto, you go first!"

The cara focused on the table.

"Even for a luck-based ga, this is extre. The odds of a correct match with a single flip are 1 in 103. And with 104 cards in total, rembering all of them will be impossible toward the end."

Saoto frowned.

But Yuko shook her head.

"Not really. morizing 104 cards is pretty easy, don't you think?"

Saoto: ?

For a mont, she was speechless.

Was this what it ant to be a monster?

But before she could process it further, Yuko continued,

"Besides, these are marked cards, so even the luck factor is eliminated. It's purely about observation and mory."

Saoto: !?

Hearing this, Saoto widened her eyes and looked at the screen. But after staring for a long ti, she couldn't spot any abnormalities.

"No need to look, Saoto. The abnormal markings on the backs of these cheating cards will fade over ti. It's probably so kind of heat-sensitive printing. Once the temperature drops, the markings disappear, making them look like regular cards."

Yuko smiled.

Saoto turned to her, dumbfounded.

"If they're cheating, doesn't that an he can't win? Why are you still smiling?!"

Yuko tilted her head.

"He can still win. If it were , I'd definitely lose the first round, since I wouldn't know the markings' anings. I'd act pitiful and beg for a second round. That way, I could figure out the pattern."

"The worst-case scenario is if they have multiple sets of different marked decks, in which case I'd lose repeatedly."

"But that's because I'm not strong enough. If it's Master, he'll probably end the ga in the first round."

Yuko's words left Saoto stunned.

This monster, just at first glance, discovered the trick in the cheating poker ga and even figured out a way to win?

But... could Haruto really...

Just as Saoto was deep in thought, Haruto's voice ca through the surveillance cara.

"With this, that makes fifty-four. Itsuki Suragi, the ga is over. That'll be thirty million, please."