"Board game club, I have a suggestion. Not sure if you'll accept it."
For some reason, after putting on the ring, Takamine Rinji gave off a subtly different vibe.
Mashihara Suzu sensed this strange change but still asked,
"What's your suggestion?"
"Since I need to finish auditing the rest of the clubs before school ends, I don't have much time to spend here. So, how about we raise the stakes? One final game to decide it all."
"What?"
"Since you and Secretary Fujiwara won the last two rounds, I still have five chips left. I'll go all-in on this one game."
"…That's fine, but what exactly do you mean by 'raise the stakes'?"
Rinji smiled faintly.
"When reviewing the other clubs, I noticed some issues. The kendo club's performance was poor, so I cut 50% of their budget. Judo club lost 5%. Rugby club failed to qualify for nationals, so they lost 10%. These three sports clubs had inflated budgets—together, their cuts total about three times your club's usual funding."
"You mean…"
"If budgets increase too much, it causes all kinds of problems. But if you win, all those cut funds will be transferred to the tabletop gaming club."
"This…"
A huge activity fund was incredibly tempting. Sozue hesitated for a moment.
She looked up and asked,
"Then… what happens if we lose?"
"If you lose, the board game club will receive zero funding for this quarter, due to 'illegal gambling.'"
"Eh!?"
Fujiwara Chika jumped up in shock.
"No funding? As in zero!?"
"Exactly. Originally, I thought of dissolving your club altogether, but decided against it." Rinji grinned. "So, do you accept?"
"…"
Makihara Sozue frowned.
The deck they were using had a mechanism.
The card backs had slight pattern differences—if you looked closely at the upper right corner, you could see a small number indicating the card's value.
Which meant, even when cards were face-down, they could tell what the card was—whether it was Rinji's hidden card or the top card in the deck.
But if Rinji had figured that out too, then they were now playing on equal ground. Their only advantage left was that with four members, as long as even one of them won, they could still claim victory.
The real question was: Had Rinji noticed the mechanism?
After a moment's hesitation, Suzue asked,
"Can we deal the cards first and decide whether to bet afterward?"
"Sure."
"Alright."
Rinji began dealing.
His own cards: one face-down, one 10.
Board game club's cards:
5, 8 — 13 points
7, Q — 17 points
K, 3 — 13 points
J, 6 — 16 points
Suzu immediately looked at Rinji's hidden card and the top of the deck.
The pattern on the top card suggested a Q. Rinji's hidden card looked like a 3.
'Looks like we've got this…'
The girls exchanged glances and pushed their chips forward.
"All in."
"Same here."
Seeing them go all in, Rinji smiled.
"Then… do you want to Hit?"
"Hit."
As long as they won, their budget would triple. Knowing that, Suzu and Chika couldn't help but smile.
"Alright."
Rinji dealt Suzu a card. The back pattern matched.
Suzu excitedly flipped it over.
5 of Spades. Q + 8 + 5 = 23. Bust.
"Ehhh!!? Why!?"
She quickly examined the card. The back definitely showed 3. Why did it turn out to be 5?
"What's wrong, Suzue?" Rinji smiled. "It's normal to bust in this kind of game. No need to look so surprised."
"Y-Yeah… you're right."
She reluctantly set the card aside, clearly shaken.
"Next."
"Stand."
"Pass. Next."
"I… I'll Hit."
"Okay."
Rinji dealt a card: 7 of Hearts.
K + 3 + 7 = 20.
"…"
This member had seen 7 on the back, so she chose to Hit, and it turned out correct.
Suzue began to doubt—was her draw just bad luck?
Lastly, it was Chika's turn.
She had 16 points. The top card showed 4.
"I'll Hit!"
"Alright."
Rinji dealt the card—it was a 4 of Diamonds.
J + 6 + 4 = 20.
"Phew… safe~" Chika wiped non-existent sweat from her forehead.
The board game club girls now relaxed. Suzue's error must've been a fluke.
Now they had: one bust, one 17, and two 20s. Even if not all won, at least two survived.
Just as everyone was relieved, Rinji flipped his hidden card.
Ace of Hearts.
10 + A = Blackjack.
"What!?"
"How is that even possible!?"
Takamine Rinji raised the two cards in his hand with a smile.
"In the end, I won."
"…What trick did you use?"
"No trick. I just happened to win. It's just that since you all went all-in, this became the final round," Rinji said. "Which means this quarter, the board game club's budget is… zero!"
"…"
"Any complaints?"
"No. But I'd like to know—how exactly did you win?" Makihara Kozue frowned. "You must've noticed the card backs, didn't you?"
"Eh? Rinji already figured it out?" Fujiwara Chika looked at him, shocked.
"Don't take me for a fool, Secretary Fujiwara. I noticed that a long time ago—I just decided to play along."
As Rinji spoke, he picked up the Spade 5 from in front of Kozue and held it up for everyone to see.
"As for my trick—it's this."
With a flick of his wrist, the Spade 5 turned into a Spade 3.
"…What kind of principle is that?"
"Live card printing."