Second round, the dealer dealt the cards again.
The players at the table took their turns. When it was Hiyori's turn, the girl chose to fold again.
Third round, she folded.
Fourth round, she folded...
And as Hiyori folded and watched from the sidelines, the situation at the table gradually started to spin out of control:
First, in the second round, Yamamura entered cautiously. Her small bet scared off Shiranami and Ishizaki, securing a win without a showdown and taking a small pot.
The third, fourth, and fifth rounds were much the same. Aside from Ishizaki and Hiyori, everyone else had some wins and losses.
The change began in the sixth round.
As the final community card was dealt, Shibata looked at Yamauchi, who was once again his opponent and had chosen to raise again. After a moment's hesitation, Shibata decisively pushed all his chips to the center of the table and said, "Are you going to call?"
27
"Huh? Going all-in already?"
Haruki Yamauchi seemed to be caught off guard. He agonized over his hand for a while before regretfully pushing it to the dealer, choosing to fold.
At that moment, a brilliant smile bloomed on Shibata's face. Probably seeking revenge for being teased in the first round, he casually revealed his hand—a K-high—and nonchalantly began to stack his chips. He didn't say a word, yet it felt like he had said everything.
Yamauchi's face instantly turned the color of pig's liver! He'd been bluffed.
Everyone at the table watched this unfold, smiles creeping onto their faces. Even Yamamura and Sakura gave Yamauchi a sympathetic glance.
At the same time——
"I don't think there's any need to watch further." Symon thought for a moment, reminding her internally, "From the looks of it, Ishizaki and Sakura have no intention of actually playing. We can basically ignore them.
"Shibata and Yamauchi have low fold rates. One is extremely competitive, the other has a strong desire to show off. They're both prime suckers.
"Yamamura and Shiranami are more cautious, but they'll occasionally take the initiative to bet and push opponents out. It's unclear if they'll call a raise. We need to test them.
"That does seem to be the case..." Hiyori Shiina asked gently in her mind, "Mr. Ghost, would you like to play a bit?"
"I suppose I can."
Symon didn't refuse. With a thought, he took control of the body and said with a smile, "But let me be clear—I'm not entirely sure about Shiranami and Yamamura's playstyles either. My playing won't look much better than yours.
The girl chuckled and whispered, "That's alright~ I don't mind that at all..."
As the two conversed in their minds, the seventh hand was about to begin. Symon casually tossed 2000 in chips into the pot as a blind, and the dealer quickly dealt cards to each player.
Since he was in the blind position for this round, Symon didn't look at his cards, patiently waiting for the other players to make their moves.
When it was his turn to act, Symon looked at the three remaining players at the table—Yamamura, Shiranami, and Yamauchi—and the pot that had already grown to 8000. He did nothing, leaving his cards face down.
The others at the table weren't surprised. Since no one had raised, the player in the blind position didn't need to add more chips to the pot. It made no sense for "Hiyori" to fold now.
At that moment, the dealer in the tailcoat turned over three community cards on the table:
7 of Diamonds, 10 of Diamonds, King of Diamonds.
The first to act, Yamauchi, looked around at everyone, took out two red chips, placed them on the table, and announced loudly, "Bet 2000!"
Judging by his demeanor, he seemed intent on avenging his earlier humiliation.
Symon casually picked up his hand, glanced at it, then put it back down. He placed two red chips on the table and said in a calm tone, "Call 2000."
When it was Yamamura's turn, the girl peeked at "Hiyori," who had finally started to play. After accidentally making eye contact, she quickly looked down and silently pushed her cards forward, choosing to fold.
On the other side, Shiranami also gave "Hiyori Shiina" a slightly surprised look. She picked up her hand to reconfirm it before quickly making the same choice.
Now only two players remained. The dealer then dealt the fourth community card: a 9.
Haruki Yamauchi carefully glanced at his own hand: Jack of Diamonds, Queen of Diamonds. He then looked again at the community cards on the table and his opponent, the "gentle girl." Feigning confidence, he took out four red chips, pushed them onto the table, and said, "Bet 4000."
Symon looked at Yamauchi, the only remaining opponent, and thought for a moment. He picked up one black chip and two red chips, placed them on the table, and pushed them past the line with his index finger, saying with a smile, "Raise to 12000."
As he spoke, the expressions of everyone at the table changed.
A raise and a re-raise. This was something no one had done at this table yet.
"Mr. Ghost, aren't you afraid of scaring him away?" Hiyori's tone in her mind was tinged with amusement.
"From the way he's acting, he must have a big hand. Combined with the 8000 in sunk costs, if he can fold now, I'll have to give him some credit." As he said this, Symon looked up at Yamauchi.
Across the table, Haruki Yamauchi indeed looked troubled. He picked up his hand again, carefully comparing it to the board to check for hands that could beat him. After a long pause, he finally took out a black chip and tentatively placed it on the table, watching the girl's expression.
Symon smiled without saying a word.
At that moment, the dealer timely placed a 6 of Diamonds on the table.
In the final betting round, Haruki Yamauchi looked at the last bet of 12000 points and had no desire to raise further. He knocked on the table, signaling a check.
Symon glanced at the community cards, thought for a moment, and then, amidst everyone's "You've got to be kidding me" expressions, he once again took two black chips and four red chips, pushed them past the line, and said with a smile, "Bet 24000."
The pot instantly grew to sixty thousand points.
Yamauchi was starting to crack. His expression kept shifting. After a long while, he forced a smile and asked tentatively, "Shiina-san, do you have the Ace and King of Diamonds?"
A smile slowly formed on Symon's lips, but he gave no answer.
Seeing she had no intention of responding, the expression on Haruki Yamauchi's face gradually vanished. His eyes glazed over, his mind seemingly drifting off somewhere.
At the table, the others couldn't help but swallow hard at the sight—the pressure was truly palpable.
Time ticked by slowly. After about thirty or forty seconds, the dealer tapped the table and reminded him, "The player must make a choice now. If you continue to delay, you will be required to pay 1000 points to all other players for every minute."
Yamauchi stammered "I..." for a long time before finally making up his mind. He gritted his teeth and said, "I fold!"
As he spoke, Yamauchi turned over his two hole cards, revealing his diamond flush. He looked at "Hiyori" expectantly, hoping she would show him her hand so he could know for sure why he lost.
Symon, however, didn't even look at him. He pushed his two hole cards to the dealer, showing no intention of revealing them.
By analyzing hole cards and betting patterns in conjunction with the community cards, one can easily deduce a player's thought process and behavioral logic. That's how he had figured out Yamauchi's performative personality and Shibata's competitive drive.
Under these circumstances, easily showing your hole cards to others is a foolish thing to do.
——Unless someone is willing to pay.
At that moment, however, Haruki Yamauchi couldn't hold back. He stood up and flipped over the two cards himself:
Ace of Diamonds, Ace of Diamonds.
"You were bluffing me too!" Yamauchi's eyes instantly widened in fury.
Symon didn't respond, merely raising his eyes to look at the dealer with a somewhat questioning expression.
The dealer turned to look at Yamauchi and took the playing cards directly from his hand.
At the same time, Hiyori Shiina said gently in her mind, "It seems we were so close to losing..."
"There's no 'close to losing.' A win is a win."
While waiting for the dealer to issue a penalty, Symon replied calmly in his mind, "In this game, not even a royal flush can win you a single extra chip. Only the rate of return and the size of the profit are the core of victory.
"Once you understand this essence, you'll realize—before the showdown, the hand itself is worthless. As long as you dare to imagine it, and make your opponent believe it, your hand can be anything."
Hiyori: "Oh my~ Is that so."
Symon was shocked: "You actually believe that?"
"Not really, it's just because you're the one who said it, Mr. Ghost..."
"Heh, +10 points for Hiyori today."
Hearing this, Hiyori Shiina asked with a laugh, "Speaking of which, I've been meaning to ask for a long time, what's a perfect score for you, Mr. Ghost?"
"100 points."
"Your standards are quite high, then."
___
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