The Hero and the Match (Gambling)

Well, setting that aside, I need to do something about this worked-up hero.

"But I heard Hero-sama himself tried to bring Niku to his room?"

"Huh?! No no, I didn't have any ulterior motive! I just wanted to ask her some questions since she has black hair."

"I wonder about that… It's pretty suspicious… You're the hero who's rumored to have proposed to a little girl, after all."

"T-there's a reason for that… no, never mind."

Hmm? There's a reason?

… …

Could it be that Haku-san told him to investigate the relationship between me and Rokuko?

If so, his somewhat unnatural behavior makes sense. Being nonchalant despite having gone as far as confessing, picking a fight over not being able to leave Rokuko in my care, destroying the table.

Right, this hero is one of Haku-san's pawns. So it's not just observation. He's probably trying to find some excuse to take Rokuko to the Imperial Capital. I can picture Haku-san welcoming… no, eagerly welcoming her. Like a gingerbread house, she'd probably recreate melon bread and fill an entire room with it.

And since I have to see the hero off safely because of my promise to Haku-san, I can't carelessly lay a hand on him. Was this all set up for that purpose?

Alright, let's repel him. But without injuring him.

"Understood. Then let's have a match."

"Huh? A match? … A match!"

Hero Wataru took the bait.

"That's what I was hoping for! I accept the challenge! Obviously nothing with lethal or serious injuries, right? The plaza in front of the cave should work for the location. What time? Right now works for me."

"Wait wait wait. There's no way I'd challenge Hero-sama to a contest of combat ability. I mean this, this right here."

I showed him a die. A standard cubic six-sided die.

"A six-sided die… A TRPG?! Don't tell me there are rulebooks too?!"

"Don't say such incomprehensible things. Your imagination is running too wild."

Tabletop Role-Playing Game, TRPG for short. There's no way that exists in this world.

… Well, if I wanted to introduce that kind of entertainment, I suppose I could.

"It's just ordinary gambling. We'll prepare an equal number of chips and compete to take them from each other. Tower & Dice, Cee-lo, Cho-han, whatever works. Do you know the rules?"

"… I think I read about them in manga a long time ago. I don't know Tower & Dice though."

"That's where you roll the die and stack chips equal to the number shown. You do that three times, and whoever puts up the most chips in the end wins. Basically, roll three times, and the person with the highest total takes everything."

"That's easy to understand. Let's go with that."

"Then we'll use this for our match, agreed?"

"Yes."

Wataru nodded. He seemed strangely confident.

"What about the dice? Should we use ones prepared by the inn?"

"No, I have dice that I obtained myself. Since I have them, let me use these."

Wataru took dice out of his luggage. Probably spoils he picked up in our dungeon.

"Then, let's decide what happens when there's a winner. If I win, a lie-detection magic tool… nah, forget it. An additional 500 gold coins."

"Then if I win, I'm taking Rokuko-san to the Imperial Capital. And that girl too."

When he pointed at 'that girl,' Niku glared at the hero. Her eyes clearly said she absolutely didn't want to go with him.

Don't worry, I won't hand over Niku. And as for Rokuko…

"Hey now, I can't just bet my employer on my own whim. My own slave is one thing, but…"

"Wha?! W-what about the partner thing?"

"Hmm? You must be confusing me with someone else."

As long as I insist I'm a different person from Narikin, she can't be wagered in the first place!

"You already said you'd have a match, so no backing out now."

"Ehhhh?! T-then, um, errr… That girl, and maybe a reduction on the table compensation…"

"… Fine. I don't know if Niku is worth 500 gold coins though."

And of course, what I'll be using is a crystal Golem Die, also known as a loaded die.

 

＊ ＊ ＊

 

"And with that, I win. I'll be taking those additional 500 gold coins."

Competing over 100 chips, I won through various means.

… Still, that hero has amazing luck. In his three dice rolls, he'd always get a 5 or 6 at least twice. I wonder what kind of cheating he's doing. I checked the dice midway through, and it's not like they only had 4, 5, and 6 on them.

But I deliberately alternated between winning and losing, losing small and winning big, until I accumulated all his chips.

"Well, it was close."

"… O-one more time!"

"Ehh, I guess I have no choice. Then let's double it to 1,000 coins. If the stakes keep doubling, you can break even with just one win, you know?"

"Guh… No, wait a moment… I have a bad feeling about this. Let's both just bet 100 gold coins each for now."

"Got it, 100 gold coins."

 

＊ ＊ ＊

 

"Ahh. I lost. And it was a pretty big loss. Unfortunately, I lost 100 gold coins' worth, so 900 gold coins will do. Congratulations!"

"Y-yes…"

Competing over 100 chips again, I lost overwhelmingly.

… As expected, in his three dice rolls, the hero would always get a 5 or 6 at least twice. I really wonder what kind of cheating he's doing. This time I played straight, and I could only win once or twice before suffering a major defeat.

"So, you should be satisfied with this. Let's stop here, okay?"

"No! Please wait. This time, I'll definitely save that girl!"

"Huh? Then you'll be betting 1,400 gold coins. Is that okay? I don't plan to let go of Niku while you still owe me."

"Fine, let's do it!"

 

＊ ＊ ＊

 

I started feeling sorry for him, so I decided to let him off with this.

"So, the total payment is 2,300 gold coins."

"… … Um, you cheated, didn't you?! I don't know how, but that was obviously cheating!"

Hero Wataru started complaining.

"What kind of cheating did I do, exactly? I handed you the dice and you thoroughly checked they weren't loaded, didn't you?"

"What do you think the probability is of 1s and 6s appearing alternately three times each?!"

"Hero-sama, what do you think the probability is of getting 5 or higher at least twice in three rolls? If you think about it, you might figure out my trick."

"… This [Super Luck: Lv 1] skill is a unique skill I received from Kami-sama… To surpass that… Ah! You ARE a summoned Japanese after all?!"

So Hero Wataru had a skill like that… I wouldn't have been able to win if I'd played fair.

Well, as expected of a hero to have such a cheat skill besides Translation-san. Though he's kind of a hopeless case for volunteering information about his hand without even being asked.

"Mine is limited to only when I'm protecting comrades. That's why it's stronger than yours."

"S-so that was the mechanism."

I said something meaningful-sounding. Well, in the earlier round when Niku wasn't at stake, I did play fair and square, so it's not a lie.

"Well then, now that I've revealed my trick, I'm done playing. Understood?"

"… … Um, 2,300 gold coins is a bit…"

"Pay up properly. You decided to bet on your own."

He was seventeen when he was summoned, so he's twenty now after three years. He's an adult even by Japanese standards, so he should pay up properly… In Japanese yen, that's 2.3 billion yen. How many lifetimes would that take to pay off? But over here, he's an S-Rank Adventurer-sama, so if he works hard for a while, he should be able to earn that without too much trouble.

"Installments are fine. Pay 100 gold coins a month for 1 year and 11 months. You'll finish paying in under 2 years. Easy, right?"

"Ughh… If I weren't S-Rank, that would be an utterly impossible, unreasonable repayment plan…"

"Then I'll waive the interest in consideration of Haku-san. I won't even say you should become a slave as collateral, so be grateful."

"… Yes, thank you very much…"

I don't know how much S-Rank adventurers can earn per month, but if it would be impossible unless he were S-Rank, then being S-Rank should make it doable, right? I'm counting on you, Hero-sama.

I had him write up a contract just to be safe, and now 100 gold coins will come in every month for 1 year and 11 months. Please work hard and complete plenty of high-paying S-Rank requests. If you want, I'm sure Haku-san will introduce you to some jobs that pay really well!

"Oh, by the way, the nuisance fee isn't included in that."

The hero's eyes welled up with tears.