♟For The Pure World ♠ [Kakegurui OC Insert]♟

Let The Battle Begin

      Everyone was surprised to see her issue an official match, and Itsuki was simply angry and confused. Standing up from her chair, she started to yell, "Hold up a second! Yumeko, wait! Weren't you holding out for a public match against the student council president, though?" "What? When did I ever say something like that?" There goes her big plan then. Looking up at Itsuki's pain, she chuckled lightly, "You have to understand. I'm not really the patient type. All right then, Kaede, let's get our gambling freak on!" 

      Runa laughed, "I tried to tell him! Without a single hitch, getting the rug pulled out from under you. Right, Michi?" "Correct. Not everything can be put into a formula logically. Some thing, you have to leave to fate." I gave it a moment of silence listening to them talk, until looking over to the Vice President. I suggested, "They're gonna need a dealer soon. You are closest to the president...right?" She looked back at me, nothing to say or do. She got up and walked down the stage as well. "I'll be happy to serve as your dealer," She introduced, walking up to them. With no time, she explained a game she came up with on the spot; Choice poker. 

      The rules were simple enough, basically being poker. An exchange period that you can do once and the best hand wins. The differences were however that you can't call or fold, only bet or raise. The person who bets more money gets to decide if the stronger hand or lower hand wins the round. Even a trash hand can win, just if you have more money than your opponent. An interesting thing to add is that there's no limit one can bet, I already know Yumeko's gears started to turning with that. With both parities agreeing to the rules, the game started. As the cards were shuffled and dealt out, I thought more on things. Yumeko will gamble anything to keep playing, and she doesn't care if she wins or loses. That counts as well when the rules are stacked against her. Playing against the Student Council treasurer in a gamble that based more on money is quite a stupid move, but in Yumeko's case...let's see if she pulls out more of that money she had when playing Mary. 

      They had their chips and their cards, so it moved to the exchanging period. While observing them, Runa chuckled looking at me. "Was that a furrowed brow I saw, Michi? Never seen you worried before~" "I was merely thinking, that's all. Being behind Yumemi and Itsuki playing Yumeko in the first place, he must have a plan in hand if he's ordering 100 ten million chips. It was clear to see he was using them." I glanced down at her, still eating her sweet and treats. In between crunches, she looked to me as well, "You think he's using you too?" I shrugged, "If he wants to be president, he has to take down Yumeko AND me. Since I've proven to be a bit more unpredictable in his eyes, of course he's using me." Looking back down at the stage, I continued, "The boy is smart, I will give him that. He's a master at calculating some people's movements, and factoring it in to use it against a person. There is one thing though." Runa jumped up, trying to guess what it is with excitement, but I patted her on the head. "Runa," I told her, staring her in the eyes. "You'll know the reason soon. I call him a boy for this reason alone." "Oh...oh. I can't wait to watch it happen.~" 

      Going back to the gamble, Yumeko raised the bet up to 21 chips and won with one higher card; an ace of hearts. Next round goes in and Kaede sets a trap for her to bet everything, and she falls for it. The crowd goes wild and Itsuki goes even more wild in my opinion. So this confirms it, he's got her tells and urges down to a T. Now only betting one chip higher, he gets the right and chooses the stronger hand. Tensions rising high, everyone waiting to see what she had, Vice President calls it and...Kaede wins over a pig. Checking back on Itsuki, she seemed to be taking this harder than anyone, hell Yumeko was just smiling. 

      "Yumeko, you're out of chips. Do you wish to continue playing?" The Vice President asked. Everyone, even Kaede, was confused with that question. Expect me, that gave me everything I need for something I knew was up. Yumeko stood up, getting a mic and walking to the front of the stage. "Oh, Itsuki," She announced. "Please do you mind? How much can you offer?" All eyes were on her. As she stumbled to the stage, Yumeko kept her eyes on the audience until they landed straight onto me. With a smirk, she held out her hand, "You too, Michi. How much can you offer?~" Insanity was staring me right in the face, and I was giving it a blank stare in return. Rather than confusion, it loved my stare. Gently rising to my feet, I started walking down to the stage along with Itsuki.

      I stood in front of the table with Itsuki, her head down to cover her eyes. "Okay," Yumeko started off. "What do you think, you guys?" Itsuki stuttered, not sure if she could even play. Yumeko said, "The other day, you told me you wanted to be my friend, didn't you? If memory serve, you wanted me and Michi to become student council president and vice president. Friends in need are friends indeed, isn't that the same?" Wow, I didn't expect her to be coaxing Itsuki like this into gambling. "Come on, what do you say? Can you help me out? Michi, you're willing to help as well, right?"

      "Itsuki," Kaede chuckling. "Now that you've been abandoned by the president, are you aligning with Yumeko and Michi?" She shivered looking at him. He continued, "Give it up now. I can still let you off the hook. Or do you want to antagonize the student council?" It was like watching children play tug of war on a stuffed animal, it can only end two ways. One side gets it, or the arms get torn off. The only factor is if the stuffed animal is strong enough to handle those forces of pulling. He went on talking, "Ambition. The will to claw your way to the top. I recognized that in you. Not to mention, the quality you and I have in common. Honestly, I felt something close to an affinity for you." "Kaede-senpai..." Before she could say anything else, I put a hand on her shoulder. She looked over to me with a gasp. "You're losing it, Itsuki," I warned her. "He will obviously say anything to get you to fold. This is Kaede we're talking about." 

      He looked to me with a scowl, "You may know a lot, but don't talk on subjects you have no business in." I rolled my eyes, "Kaede, I've lived in the real world while you stayed on the 'high road' for your whole life. I know what an affinity looks like, and you are the last person to know that feeling. That emotion." He was lost for words, so I went back to Itsuki. Turning her around to look straight at Kaede, I whispered to her, "Look him in the eyes and think...is he really meaning what he says? Does he believe this wholeheartedly?" She looked down on him with a wide eyed expression, sweat collecting on her skin. He then showed the rest of his opinion on her, thinking that she was completely incompetent and irrational. That wasn't without it's offer though, and it was a chance to get back on the student council. As she seemed surprised, Yumeko interjected.

      "That's an odd choice of words. You call Itsuki incompetent, but what on earth give you the right to make such an assessment?" I stepped behind Yumeko, continuing it for her. "Even so, it really isn't a good enough reason to give up those ambitions," I informed with Yumeko agreeing. Kaede responded that they weren't producing results, so there was no use. Yumeko disagreed once more. "Itsuki," She turned to her. "In order to acquire something, you must first offer something to show good faith. Athletes give up their youth to devote themselves to practice, businessmen offer collateral to borrow money. In order to realize your goals, you have to assert some risk. The bigger your goal, the greater the risk." 

      She was down hook, line, and sinker. Thinking on it with a bilious look on her face, she opened her eyes and look to me. With a nod, she screamed out, "Vengeance is mine!" Staying right behind Yumeko with me, we both looked to the Vice president. She had her determination, and I stay monotone as we both said together, "A hundred chips! Please add one billion yen to her pot!"