Anna Kinomiya...
This name did not follow the usual surname-first, given-name-second order.
Could it be that this girl was a foreigner or of mixed heritage? Meari asked this question with some surprise.
After the initial panic of seeing Meari, Ririka quickly calmed down, a polite smile on her face: "Yes, my mother is Russian."
Ririka smiled and stepped aside: "Saotome, do you have something urgent to do? Please, go ahead."
"Thank you then."
Saotome Meari did not stand on ceremony.
She approached the staff and asked, "I'm here to look at the Student Council's available rooms.
Are there any vacant dormitories? I'd like to buy one."
The staff member paused, then said with difficulty, "I'm sorry, you've come at an inconvenient time.
We only have one dormitory listed for sale right now, and the young lady next to you just said she wanted to buy it."
So she's also here to buy a room?
Meari looked at "Anna Kinomiya" in surprise, then turned back, asking unwillingly, "When will more rooms be available at the earliest?"
The staff member shook her head: "I'm very sorry, the deadline for paying the tribute has just passed, and students in urgent need of cash have already sold their rooms.
There likely won't be any vacant dormitories for the next few weeks."
Seeing the disappointment on Meari's face, she added, "If you're not in a hurry, you can leave your name with us, and we'll contact you as soon as a room becomes available."
A few weeks, do I have to wait that long... Meari grew anxious.
If it had been Meari from a few days ago, she might have thought waiting a few weeks was fine; she wasn't short on time.
But after suddenly realizing Ayanokoji's close relationship with Miharu Taki Sakura yesterday, that sense of leisure vanished.
A sense of urgency arose in her heart, and she hoped to quickly deepen Ayanokoji's affection for her and confirm their relationship as soon as possible.
If she waited another month, Miharu Taki Sakura might just sneak into Ayanokoji's bed one night, and she would be home, completely unaware!
Meari wanted to always "seize the initiative," and staying at school overnight was a necessary condition.
She didn't want to wait anymore.
"Is there really no other way?" Meari asked eagerly.
"There is, actually..." The staff member looked at Ririka, then at Meari, with an expectant look: "You two can gamble.
You can gamble for ownership of this room."
The Student Council had two ways of selling dormitories: one was to directly spend two million yen to purchase three years of usage rights for a dormitory.
The other was through a gamble with a stake of two million yen.
If one won the gamble, they would get the dormitory usage rights for free, while the loser would have to pay the two million yen rent.
Meari also recalled this method that Kurume had mentioned.
Looking at the staff member's expression, she seemed to be enjoying the drama, wanting her to gamble with this Miss Anna.
Meari could not obtain the dormitory through the normal process.
Now, if she wanted to get the room quickly, she would have to compete with this girl.
Meari didn't mind gambling; she was used to it and confident she would win.
However, when she saw the white-haired girl beside her, she hesitated.
She had no grudge against her, and it might not be good to suggest gambling right after meeting her.
Moreover, the other party arrived first, and she didn't look like she was short on money.
Would she accept gambling with her?
After a moment of hesitation, Meari still tentatively asked.
"Anna, there's only one room left now.
Are you willing to gamble with me? If I lose, you won't have to pay for it; I'll cover the full cost for you."
If the other party didn't agree, Meari wasn't going to pester her; she would just think of other methods.
As the Vice President of the Student Council, Ririka naturally understood the rules of the Student Service Center under the Student Council.
As long as she won the gamble, she could get the dormitory for free.
Ririka was not short on money and wasn't particularly keen on gambling.
If possible, she didn't want to make an enemy of Meari.
However, looking at Meari, she seemed to really want this dormitory...
Weighing the pros and cons, Ririka subtly suggested, "Saotome, if you really need this dormitory, gambling isn't out of the question for us.
However... let's not gamble money, okay? Can we just gamble for the priority to purchase the dormitory?"
If Meari wanted to gamble, she would accompany her, and as long as no money was involved, Meari shouldn't develop ill feelings towards her.
"Eh, is that okay?" Meari blinked in surprise, hesitating, "But, you were here first, weren't you? Just gambling for priority isn't fair to you, is it?"
Ririka smiled and shook her head: "It's fine, I just arrived not long ago.
If you had stepped into this room a moment earlier, you would be the one with priority."
This is the quality a young lady should have.
Her speech is so well-mannered.
What kind of education did those gambling maniacs I met before, who never gave an inch, receive!
Meari's impression of Miss Anna immediately improved greatly.
Since both parties agreed to gamble, the staff led them to a gambling table and placed a board in the center of the table.
This board was very peculiar; its center was not for Go or Chess, but a unique diamond-shaped board with two equilateral triangles extending from the ends of a square.
It was a magnetic board, with a star-shaped pattern in the center, connected to various parts of the board by diagonal and straight lines.
Next to the board were four uniquely shaped pieces, cylindrical and similar in size to International Chess pieces, featuring two different images.
One piece had a white rabbit on top, while the other three pieces had three black hounds on top.
The staff member explained: "The game you two will be gambling on is rabbit and hound."
"One of you will use the rabbit, and the other will use the three hounds.
Both sides can move along straight and diagonal lines."
"The rules are simple: if the rabbit escapes, the rabbit wins.
If the hounds capture the rabbit, leaving it no escape, then the hounds win.
However, the rabbit can move in all directions, while the hounds can only move one at a time and cannot move backward.
Also, the game only lasts for thirty turns; if the hounds cannot catch the rabbit within the stipulated number of turns, then the rabbit wins the game."
"The hounds can only move forward and not backward, huh?
It sounds like the rabbit is stronger..." Meari pondered, stroking her chin.
Meari had never played this game, but she instinctively felt that the rabbit was stronger.
Although there were three hounds, they could only move forward and not backward, which gave the rabbit opportunities to circle around.
Moreover, once the turns ended, the rabbit would automatically be declared the winner; the rabbit completely held the active advantage.
In other words, the key to the gamble is who gets the rabbit...
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