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“Heh heh, this is the first time that anyone’s ever called me that.” Akatsuki Mitarai chuckled again, but the look in his eyes grew even colder.
Natsuya snorted and said, “Everyone would say so if they could see who you really were.”
“Didn’t you just say that the word ‘everyone’ was a foolish one?”
“I did, but right now I just feel like using it.”
“It seems that I’m truly hated… Natsuya, you’re making me experience something I’ve never experienced from any other girl.”
Natsuya furrowed her brows. “Stop calling me by my name.”
“You’re special to me. The most special woman of all.” Akatsuki Mitarai had an abnormal look in his eyes as he looked directly at her. “I really, really want to obtain you…”
Natsuya felt a chill from this. This was the same look. That icy… no, it had surpassed iciness. It was a distant, abnormal look, one that caused her to once feel danger and disgust.
“I’m feeling uncomfortable. Goodbye.” Natsuya made to leave. She really didn’t want to deal with this person for any longer.
Akatsuki Mitarai suddenly reached out and attempted to grab her.
Natsuya, who was on guard against him, slapped his hand away with a resounding smack . The sound echoed throughout the hall, attracting some attention.
“My apologies, that was impolite of me.” Akatsuki Mitarai then said in a soft voice, “I just couldn’t help myself.”
Natsuya glared at him.
“Mitarai-kun, don’t be in such a rush,” someone teased.
“That’s right. Although I can understand your feelings of wanting to have contact with a pretty girl, it’s important to be gentlemanly.”
“You should at least make sure you’re alone before making your move, otherwise it’s only natural that you’ll be slapped.”
Various people commented on what just happened. Most of the comments were a bit lecherous.
Nobody detected the tense atmosphere between them… or perhaps some did notice it, but chose to ignore it.
“I still haven’t finished talking,” Akatsuki said softly. “Listen to the end. It’ll be good for you.”
Natsuya eyed him coldly.
“Let’s have a bet with the upcoming game. If you win, I promise that I shall never approach you again.”
Natsuya’s gaze became sharper upon hearing this.
“And if I win, kiss me in front of everyone here.”
Natsuya frowned in disgust.
“With how much you hate me, you should be happy to accept such a gamble.” Akatsuki Mitarai smiled. “As long as you win, you can get rid of me forever. And if I win, it’s nothing more than some contact with our lips.”
Natsuya didn’t reply.
“We can even have Miura-san be our witness. You don’t need to worry that I’ll go back on my word after the bet. I don’t know what the specific game will be either, but it should be something involving our Spirit-branded Retainers. If you have confidence in yourself and your Spirit-branded Retainer, then you should accept this bet.” Akatsuki Mitarai extended his palms. “How about it, Natsuya?”
“Stop calling me by name. I don’t have any obligation to accept a bet with you about anything.”
“You don’t dare to accept the bet… Well, there’s no helping it. After all, your Spirit-branded Retainer is that famous useless scumbag.”
The student council president stopped in her tracks when she heard this.
“Seiji Haruta, known far and wide as the useless trash of the Haruta family. He’s a piece of rubbish who’s not even at an ordinary human’s level, a scumbag who reeks with the rotten stench of depravity… yet he’s actually changed to such an extent. It’s as inconceivable as a stinkbug transforming into a monkey.” Akatsuki Mitarai cackled. “It’s truly a miracle—yes, I believe that as well. But even if it’s a miracle, he’s nothing more than a worm that’s transformed into an animal. I can’t believe that you wanted to lure such a person over to your side. Is your situation really bad enough to the extent where you have to recruit such a character? I’m truly worried about you; a piece of trash like him is basically—”
“Shut up!” Natsuya shouted coldly. She slowly looked back towards him again, burning rage in her eyes.
Akatsuki Mitarai was certain that it would be his victory when he saw her furious eyes.
Seiji received another phone call from Natsuya.
At the moment, he was still reading the borrowed light novel in the pagoda. Not only that, he also had some confectioneries and desserts that a server brought to him. He was having a carefree time.
“My apologies, Seiji.”
He heard her start off with an apology right after he picked up the call.
“What’s the matter?” Seiji asked.
“I agreed… to a bet with Akatsuki Mitarai,” Natsuya said in a low voice. “In the upcoming game, if I win, he won’t approach me ever again. And if he wins, I have to… kiss him in front of everyone here.”
Seiji was rendered speechless.
“I apologize for my impulsiveness,” Natsuya said with a sigh.
“Everyone has times when they can be impulsive. Did that guy say something unpleasant?”
“Yes…”
‘So even the president is weak to taunts… well, she is a teenaged girl after all, and that person is someone that she’s always disliked.’ Even someone who was good at controlling their emotions would have their limits. Seiji understood how it was.
“Since you agreed to the bet, then let’s do our best. As your Spirit-branded Retainer, I’ll do my very best to help you obtain victory.”
“Thank you, Seiji.”
“No need to be so polite. I said before that there’s no need to worry too much about me. If things are intolerable, then all we have to do is battle courageously! I definitely support you.” Seiji chuckled. “If I was there at the time, and heard that guy say unpleasant things, perhaps I would even be the first one to hit someone.”
Natsuya smiled upon hearing this. All the negative emotions built up from talking to Akatsuki Mitarai disappeared. Seiji’s voice had such a power… at least to her.
Natsuya believed that she would be able to obtain victory in the bet.
…
It was now time for the game.
With Shunsuke Furukawa leading the way, the Spirit-branded Retainers left the mansion and walked to the grounds… an empty clearing in the forest.
There was a barrier covering this entire area that blocked the wind and snow. Even the temperature was under control here. It was warm and comfortable.
There was a luxurious round table in the middle of the clearing, and all the young Yin-Yang Masters, including Natsuya, were sitting on soft and expensive-looking chairs.
Seiji walked to Natsuya and stood beside her. All the other Spirit-branded Retainers also joined their masters’ sides.
The host, Ryouta Moritama, was a boy with a head of thick curls. Ryouta was wearing plain Sakura Island-style clothing and half-moon glasses, which lent him a scholarly appearance.
He explained the game’s rules to everyone in a friendly manner.
The gist of it was that the Yin-Yang Masters would play a card game with everyone involved. Normal poker cards would be used in addition to some special cards. There were various special cards, and the most important ones were the cards that each Yin-Yang Master would start with: one Spirit-branded Retainer Card, three duel cards, and one cooperative duel card.
Duel cards allowed the players to challenge any opponent to a “duel.” In such a scenario, both Yin-Yang Masters’ Spirit-branded Retainers would be required to duel, and the winner of the duel would determine the winner between the Yin-Yang Masters.
The winner would be allowed to take two cards—excluding the special Spirit-branded Retainer, duel, or cooperative duel cards from the loser—or discard two of their own cards for points. After the duel, both players would have to discard their duel card.
One would be unable to duel against someone they had defeated already. Winners would be unable to challenge those they had won against, but the losers would be able to challenge that had defeated them before.
When a Yin-Yang Master started or met with a duel, they could use their one-time cooperative battle card to assist their Spirit-branded Retainer in the duel.
If a Yin-Yang Master’s Spirit-branded Retainer lost three times, the Yin-Yang Master would lose their Spirit-branded Retainer card and receive a huge penalty in points. If the Yin-Yang Master still had duel cards in hand when the game ended, there would also be a large penalty in points.
Simply speaking, Spirit-branded Retainer cards were the Yin-Yang Masters’ ace cards and had to be kept until last. However, the duel cards had to be used up, which meant that every Spirit-branded Retainer would have to duel at least three times!
The duels were meant to be friendly, and killing or seriously injuring someone was strictly forbidden.
After Ryouta explained the rules, the game began.