Editing Kakegurui Trip Fulltext (section)

==Chapter 3, part 6==

After giving the girls their drinks, my hands were free and I could finish my sausage.
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So, there would be a gamble, Mary was unhappy and Yumeko was smiling. This felt like a familiar situation.
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Ace was back in a few minutes. He was holding a box with a colorful print on it. ''"Goldilocks, I'm so sorry I kept you waiting. This is the game. Let's have a fierce battle."''<br>
He showed us the front of the box. It was Twister.
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''"Oh, that's a classic"'', Yumeko said.
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''"Are you kidding me! I'm not playing that with you!"'', Mary screamed. ''"This is not a game for strangers. You pervert!"''
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Ace stayed undeterred. ''"Aw, don't say that, Goldilocks. I'm sure it will be a fun summer memory no matter how it turns out."''
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'''Twister is a balance game. Players have to share a mat with colored circles on it. In turn, a spinner is used for each player to determine to what color circle they need to move what limb. Hands and feet must be touching a circle with the color that was determined by the spinner. No other body parts may be touching the ground. As the game progresses, the bodies of the players become entangled and keeping balance becomes harder. The player who loses their balance first, loses the game.'''
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This is the kind of game Mary would hate the most. It would be a real challenge to get her to play it.<br>
I looked at Yumeko. She was staring intently at Mary with a gentle smile.
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Mary noticed her gaze. ''"W-what are you looking at..."'' 
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Yumeko kept staring and took a step closer. 
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''"No, absolutely not..."'', Mary said while Yumeko crept in another step. ''"Just because I promised doesn't mean you can make me do anything..."''
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They were so close now, their chests were touching.
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''"Argh!"'' Mary turned away and stomped her feet on the sand. ''"Fine, fine! But there is a condition! There will be a gamble first on who gets to play against Ace. I absolutely demand it. You'll allow that, Yumeko, or else I'll just break my promise!"''
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The wooden sticks our frankfurters had been pierced on were laying in the sand next to our towel. They had one dull and one pointed end. Mary grabbed two of them. ''"Here, break these in half"'', she said to me. 
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I hesitated.
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''"Or must you let a frail maiden like myself do these kind of things?"'', she said, manipulating me into obedience. 
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I did as she asked. ''"Is this good enough?"''<br>
I had four sticks in my hand now. Two of them had a dull end and the other two a pointed end. All four of them had a broken-off end on the other side.
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Mary took the sticks from me and turned to Ace, showing them to him. ''"The game is on. However, these sticks determine who you will play Twister with. We will all draw one. Whoever has the same stick end as you, is your opponent."''
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Ace widened his eyes. ''"Oh, I see. I defeat someone chosen at random to get a date with you. Well... It's not how I wanted it, but it will have to do, I suppose."''
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''"Mary-san, why all this extra delay? Just play Twister with the guy yourself and --- mumble."'' Mary quickly slapped Yumeko's mouth shut with her hand. ''"Be quiet. You got me into this mess, so you should share some of the risk yourself."''
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As Yumeko was trying to say something with a muffled voice, Mary turned to me. ''"Suzui, I'm sure you already understood that you are drawing a stick too."''
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I nodded.
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Ace picked up his sweet talk again. ''"Whoever my opponent is, I'll defeat them! Nothing will stand between me and a date with my beautiful Goldilocks!"''
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''"Arg! Why did it have to be a guy like this to hit on me."'' Mary muttered some curses and pressed the sticks into my hand. ''"You stick them into the sand. It's fairer if I don't do it myself. Hurry up!"''
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''"Okay."'' I rolled the bundle of sticks between my palms. I wanted to do something to help Mary, but no bright ideas popped into my head. It's gong to be pure chance then. Ace didn't seem to care that I was preparing the sticks while also being a friend of Mary's.
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I knelt in the hot sand. While I was placing the sticks, I covered them with my free hand while looking away. When I stood up, all four of them were visible, pointing straight up with the broken-off end exposed.
I didn't know which stick was which and it was unlikely anyone else did either. ''"So, who's drawing first"'', I asked?
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''"Hmm... I'll let the enemy go first"'', Mary said while glaring at Ace.
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''"The enemy, huh? It hurts me if you say it like that. You are such a sweet angel, destined to be mine. I'm certain of it."'' Ace grabbed one of Mary's hair locks and stroked it. ''"You will soon smile at me, you know."'' 
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Mary shivered and stepped away. ''"Just back off already!"''
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It didn't seem to bother Ace too much. He looked calm and collected. It was the calmness of someone observing while planning their next move. 
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''"Okay then, lets do it"'' Ace bend over and pulled out one of the sticks without hesitating. ''"Dull end"'', he said while looking at it.
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''"Yumeko is next. I'll go after that"'', Mary said.
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Yumeko wasn't objecting anymore. Before drawing, she let her fingertip pass over all of the sticks. ''"Which one should I choose...?"''
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Whoever drew a dull end now would have to play Twister with Ace. I knew what result I was hoping for at this point. Since I'd hate any of the girls being coerced into Twister, it left me as the preferred player.
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''"This is the one!"'' Yumeko said, while yanking out a stick and holding it high with a dramatic gesture. All of us looked up. It had a pointed end. I felt relieved.
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''"Right then. My turn"'', Mary said with tension in her voice.<br>
She bend over, keeping her knees straight, and stared at the two remaining sticks intensely. Her behind was on display for us and I looked away to not stare. Ace was staring shamelessly with wide open eyes, however.
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''"This one!"'' Mary raised a stick to the sky in one quick move. It was even more dramatic than how Yumeko did it.
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I needed to squint to see the stick in the bright sunlight.
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''"Pointy end! I did it! Suzui, you are playing Twister with Ace! If you lose, I'll kill you!"'', Mary shouted with joy. 
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Clearly pleased with herself, Mary turned towards us and brushed away her blond, twin-tailed hair. It glimmered in the sun. 
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Standing with his arms crossed, Ace was clearly dejected. ''"If you, my golden haired angel, really don't want to play Twister with me, I have no choice."''
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Then Ace turned to me. ''"Sorry that we skipped the introduction. You are Suzui-san, right?"'', he said while extending his hand. I shook it.
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''"This is a serious battle. I won't hold back and neither should you"'', Ace said. His handshake was strong and his gaze pierced me. There clearly was a lot of fighting spirit behind those eyes. I couldn't let myself be intimidated by it. After all, I was chosen to defend the honor of our fair maiden Goldilocks.
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''"You're on. Fair match. No mercy"'', I replied.
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Ace's smile was refreshing. ''"Yeah, that's the spirit!"''
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