Naoki and the others arrived at the girls' section. On each side of the long rectangular tables were five chairs.
A short-haired female host popped up and cheerfully explained, "Hello, everyone. To fully embrace the matchmaking gamble spirit, we've also divided roles in the girls' section into two types: the confessors and the choosers."
"If you think you're the bottom, choose the confessor role. If you think you're the top, sit on the chooser side."
"Everything else follows the same rules as male-female pairings. The confessors may use perks to reduce the amount of gambling losses they have to pay."
"Exchanging contact info costs only half the wager, dining together is one-third, a day-long date is one-fifth, and spending the night together... just one-tenth!"
The girls exchanged awkward glances.
"Mary, what do you think?" Naoki asked with mock innocence.
Mary scoffed, "Obviously, the confessor side. As the bottom, I can use perks to lower losses. Even without spending the night, paying one-third for a meal is already worth it."
"I agree," Yukimi Togakushi nodded. She didn't really care about roles anyway. She was here purely for the gamble.
Hanatemari Tsuzura followed the group without objection.
As for Naoki, that was a given.
The five of them came here to gamble. Naturally, they had to be on the same team.
"We choose to be confessors," Mary declared with resolve, taking the lead tonight.
The female dealer nodded and handed over the order sheets. "You'll be matched with opponents shortly. Follow the order listed to make your confessions. Fill this out and hand it back to me."
"So this determines the confession order," Mary mused. "Shouldn't matter as long as we plan well. If we each confess to different people, the match probability is lowest."
"But if we all choose one person, the odds of matching go up. Once a match is made, everyone else who chose that same person still has to pay up."
"This setup favors the confessors. Pure guesswork gives you, what, a one-in-five chance? Maybe less."
Everyone nodded at her logic and sat quietly, waiting for the opponents to arrive.
Ten minutes later...
The female dealer returned, visibly sweating. "Um, your opponents have been matched."
A gasp swept across the room. Girls at the other tables stood up, some even crowding around, as if something unbelievable was approaching.
Curious now, the group peeked over. A group of women entered from the far end of the hall.
Some familiar faces. Some new.
Seeing them, Mary and Yukimi's expressions shifted instantly. Mikura blushed with excitement.
Naoki froze. This wasn't good.
Yes, she'd wanted to use the matchmaking gamble to deepen things with Ririka.
Ririka had picked up on the hint and came.
But why...
One by one, the women took their seats across from Naoki's group.
The dealer cleared her throat, trying to stay calm. "So, Table Five's confessors and choosers are now finalized."
"The confessors are Yukimi Togakushi, Naoki Utsugi, Mikura Sado, Hanatemari Tsuzura, and Mary Saotome."
"The choosers are..."
Mary stood up, protesting, "Juraku Sachiko, as the host of this event, how are you even allowed to participate? This feels way too sketchy. All the dealers are under you!"
She left out the obvious. Judging by Mikura's blissed-out expression, the girl was already offering herself up. And likely would drag the rest of them down too.
This was practically a setup to lose.
"There's no rule against student council members participating," Juraku said calmly, leaning on her hand with a relaxed smile. She watched Mary with amused eyes.
"I knew I couldn't miss tonight!" came a youthful voice. "You all ran over here without inviting me, but good thing I followed you."
A petite girl, barely 150cm tall, strolled over, lollipop in mouth. "You're Mary Saotome, right? I'm Runa Yomozuki, Chair of the Disciplinary Committee. I'll be supervising this match. You can relax."
The Disciplinary Committee served as impartial observers in high-stakes gambles. Even gambles deciding the student council president were under their watch.
No one was more credible.
Mary clicked her tongue and sat down, realizing she had no choice.
Runa cheerfully took over the dealer's seat. "I've got the rules down. Let's see... right, the choosers. Our dear confessors today sure are lucky. First up is our event host, the Student Council's Public Morals Chair, Juraku Sachiko."
Yukimi grimaced. Going up against someone that high-ranking? No chance.
She was a nobody who couldn't even afford gambling hall management fees.
Why were they being targeted? Just for being with these girls?
Tsuzura was visibly anxious too. What had felt like a winning plan was now falling apart.
"Next, also from the Student Council, our Aesthetics Chair, Miharutaki Sakura! I bet some of you in the hall have been busted by her before."
Sakura remained composed, calm even in this chaos.
"Runa, your intros are getting long," she said coolly.
"Oh come on, Sakura, lighten up. You're here to win hearts, right? With all these cute girls in front of you, this is the perfect chance."
Juraku threw a playful glance at her teammate. Nothing was more entertaining than seeing a girl with a fiancé show up for matchmaking.
"Sakura, think Aoi will regret not coming once he hears about this?"
"Save the nonsense for later."
The choosers' side buzzed with energy. Meanwhile, the confessors sat in tense silence.
Tsuzura bit her lip. "Naoki, it's that council chair from before. Can we really win against two of them?"
Yukimi was pale. "No. The scariest ones are still to come."
Mary, still new to the school, looked down the line. Gorgeous women, yes, but were they powerful too?
One even wore a mask in broad daylight. Odd.
"Alright, third and fourth choosers, people you all know well. The Vice President and President of the Student Council: Kirari Momobami and Ririka Momobami."
Naoki: ...
No. She'd just wanted Ririka. Why the hell was Kirari here too? Sakura showing up was headache enough. Why are all the capture targets piling in?
This was a recipe for disaster.
Mary: ...
No way. She must be hearing things. Why would the President and VP show up for a low-stakes match like this?
It was like leaving the beginner village to grind and running straight into the final boss.
This destroyed their plans to earn gambling money.
Mary's glow dimmed.
Around them, the girls at other tables looked on with envy. Mary glanced at Mikura, whose eyes sparkled with submission, and instantly understood.
Losing to Student Council execs might be a blessing or even an honor. After all, perks existed.
Who wouldn't want to date or even spend a night with one of them?
"President, why didn't you tell me you'd be here?"
"Ah, Sayaka. Well, now you've found me, haven't you?"
Just… not like this.
Sayaka Igarashi had rushed over the moment she heard the president was participating. The only way she could help and eliminate potential rivals was to join in.
"And our final chooser is someone you all know too well. The Student Council Secretary, Sayaka Igarashi. Handles everything from dues, debts to rankings. Pair up with her and you're bound for benefits."
"Runa, maybe save the pitch."
Pairing up with others wasn't her goal. Helping the President win was.
Runa clapped her hands. "Alright, now let's move on to the chatting phase. Time for both sides to get to know each other."
It got awkward fast. Tsuzura and Yukimi couldn't withstand the pressure and stayed silent.
Mary was still consumed by strategy.
Mikura was practically drooling over Juraku.
No choice. Naoki would have to step up.
After all, this was like a multi-capture date event, wasn't it?
If none of them made the first move, she'd take on all five herself.
Though she couldn't be too obvious.
There was no way this many key figures showing up was a coincidence.
Ririka might be here because of her. Kirari probably came out of curiosity. Sayaka followed Kirari. Juraku might be here for Mikura. But Sakura?
She was likely here for Naoki.
That flirting last time must have worked.
If it were just observation, she wouldn't have joined the gamble herself.
So, three were out. Two to prioritize.
If Ririka came because of her invitation, she might really choose Naoki.
But was she really that love-struck?
Would she confess just to be with Naoki, even at the cost of losing?
No. Probably not.
Naoki had only invited her. There was no promise to lose on purpose.
Same logic applied to Sakura.
"Um, let's just chat casually, shall we? I'm Naoki Utsugi. My hobbies are..."
Getting handsy with hot girls was a bit too honest. Better to appeal to what Ririka and Sakura would like.
Ririka? She'd like anything Naoki did. That was a given.
But what about Miharutaki Sakura?
Generally, people are drawn to those with similar interests. Soulmates, they call it.
Some are attracted to traits they lack, seeking balance.
But that's usually because they feel inadequate.
Confident people, those who feel complete, prefer compatibility.
Sakura was clearly the former. She'd value shared traits.
Someone like her wouldn't be impressed by a party animal.
"I enjoy reading, chess, and cooking."
The others shot her looks. Since when had Naoki ever done any of that?
"Recently, I've been reading a book called *The Last Cuckoo*. It's by a new author, but the writing is mature, thought-provoking, very immersive."
At that, Sakura's eyes gleamed. "You've read that too?"
"Yes. I loved the protagonist's final decision. To others it seemed tragic, but to her, it was the true pursuit of happiness. I'd call it a happy ending."
"I think so too," Sakura said with a faint smile.
**System**: Because you share the same hobby and viewpoint, Miharutaki Sakura's favorability toward you has increased by three.
**System**: Miharutaki Sakura's favorability has reached 21. Orange Blind Box awarded!
Mary, Tsuzura, and Yukimi stared at Naoki in stunned silence.
That book? Yukimi had been reading it just yesterday while they were discussing strategy in the second library room. And Naoki's thoughts? Word for word the same as Yukimi's reaction back then.
Still, if it worked, who cared? Even if it meant lying to an ally.
Naoki felt a surge of satisfaction. She had only mentioned that book to flesh out her persona.
Who would've thought Sakura had read it too?
Kudos to Yukimi. As the literature club president, her taste clearly matched Sakura's.
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