Editing Kakegurui Trip Fulltext (section)

==Chapter 5, part 11==

I was leaning back in my desk chair. My body felt numb and my strength had left me. It was as if I didn't have the energy to get up, even if I wanted to.
<br><br>
I've lost it all and it was Yumeko's doing. I had asked the staff about that guy who placed the 200 million Yen bet on Hana. He was famous. He insisted to sign up for everything as 'Ace'. He was on good terms with Yumeko. He was seen talking to one of her friends just before the final round.
<br><br>
It didn't matter anymore, but I found myself thinking about where I went wrong.<br>
If if hadn't bullied Yumeko at the ship, would she have ignored the tournament? Would everything have turned out fine if I didn't rig the poker games? Would it have helped if had I refused her as participant? None of those things seemed right. 
<br><br>
Yumeko Jabami was just something that happened to me, like a hurricane or a heart attack.
<br><br>
You could say it was all because I was greedy, but only losers aren't greedy. Taking things slow and be modest was not something I could have done. I couldn't have found the motivation within me to dedicate myself to something that would only bring me mediocre success. It was the stars or the gutter for me and nothing in between was worth the effort.
<br><br>
I leaned over the desk and held my head in my hands. My mind was a blur and my thoughts felt just as heavy as my limbs. Thinking clearly would not have helped me now, anyway. Soon, I would be kicked out of this place. All of the Kansankai who followed me, believed in me and trusted me would be bitterly disappointed. I was ashamed to face anyone at this point.
<br><br>
Paying out the side bet winnings was... impossible. If I presented the current situation to the investors, they would probably cover the loss, but only if I gave up ownership and new management was installed. My casino would no longer be mine.
<br><br>
I thought about Hana and the shame hit me even harder. My most unwaveringly loyal follower. What would she say to me now?
<br><br>
The door opened. ''"Ah, Kifune. There you are. You look terrible"'', Kirari said. Sayaka entered my office behind her and was carrying a briefcase.
<br><br>
''"... What can I do for you?"'', I said reluctantly while looking up. ''"There are no ships leaving the island today. I guess I'm arranging VIP suites for you both"'', I sighed.
<br><br>
I was bankrupt and Kirari knew about the cheating. There was no point pretending to be the eager hostess anymore.
<br><br>
''"No need. I have my own transport on standby"'', she said with a faint smile on her blue lips. ''"Your tournament was quite a show. What started out as a competition between players, turned into a battle between an individual and the management, didn't it? The ups and downs of it... The moves that were made... The passion of those involved... I very much enjoyed watching it."
<br>''<br>
''"Yeah, well, you didn't come here just to flatter me, right? There are more important things you want to discuss. Go on, hit me with them"'', I said while leaning back in the chair again and looking straight at her.
<br><br>
Kirari maintained the smile. ''"No need to hurry. Do you have any tea? I'd like to talk slowly."''
<br><br>
''"In here? There's only the coffee maker. I'm forced to send you to the bar for tea. They are still open. It's free for you, of course. Enjoy"'', I replied.
<br><br>
Kirari looked slightly dejected. ''"You're being cold. It's fine, I guess. Let's not dally and get down to business, then."''
<br><br>
I owed her. For the casino plan to work out I needed to be covered by Hyakkaou's special status and the island location was a dream. If I couldn't use Ryouran, I couldn't have started a casino that was anywhere near as alluring.
<br><br>
I was ready to pay a lease or negotiate some profit sharing agreement with the student council. It turned out I didn't have to. Kirari just let me use the island for free. She didn't exactly do it on a whim, because she had the paperwork ready before I knocked on her door. She saw me coming and gave me the most incredible deal. This felt a bit too lucky, but she had made the impression that she wanted to casino too, so I didn't think too much about it. 
<br><br>
Now, she was undoubtedly here to reap the rewards of her generosity. A generosity that had cost her nothing. She had us plan, fund and build the casino for her and all she had to do was give us permission to use the land. 
Well played, president. Well played.
<br><br>
''"So, about the island..."'', Kirari started. 
<br><br>
I closed my eyes and braced myself. This was the end. My head was on the execution block and Kirari was swinging the axe. 
<br><br>
I was startled by the door hitting the wall with a loud bang. Hana rushed into the room. She lost her balance and fell to the floor.
<br><br>
''"Oh, dear"'', I said with a timid voice. Of all the people, Hana was the last who I wanted to be a witness to what was going to happen.
<br><br>
Hana must have sprinted full speed to here. She was breathing heavily and sweating. ''"Please, student council president!! Please let Kifune-sama continue to run the casino!!"'', Hana shouted full volume. Her voice was distorted and raspy.
<br><br>
She looked Kirari straight in the eyes from the floor. ''"You can give me a Life Schedule. Do whatever you want with me. I'll obey you no matter what. I-I can be useful, you know. Anything is fine as long as Kifune-sama gets to k-keep being the manager here"'', she said with tears welling up.
<br><br>
A Life Schedule is something that is given to those truly hopelessly in debt to the student council. It's essentially slavery. If you happen to receive one, it means you have to do what you are told, even marry and have children with whom you are told to. Your complete, life long obedience becomes the repayment. Depending on the circumstances, you could still end up with an ambitious career. However, the clout, power and access that come with it will be used by those you have to obey.
<br><br>
Hana keeled before Kirari and slammed her head into the floor. ''"Please... Student council president... Please..."'' She lifted her head, looked at Kirari and slammed it on the floor a second time. And then a third time, with even more force.
<br><br>
I quickly stood up and grabbed her by the collar of her shirt to prevent her from doing it again. 
<br><br>
Kirari was silently watching with a neutral expression. Sayaka was not even looking at Hana at all.
<br><br>
Hana tried to hit the floor with her head once more and I tightened my grip to stop it. Her forehead was bleeding. Hopefully it was just the skin that was damaged. 
<br><br>
---
<br><br>
''"Yeah, they seem to be willing to loan the money. They asked for more details. They'd only do that if they were seriously considering it. It won't be a problem."'' Hana's voice on the phone was weak as usual and that was not because of the call quality. 
<br><br>
''"Great job. You are good at handling this sort of thing. If this works out, it will be your achievement"'', I answered.
<br><br>
Hana the housepet was a great recruit. Everyone in the Kansankai was useful, but Hana had special kind of single-mindedness that made her put in the extra effort to make anything work out.
<br><br>
I was worried about her shy personality. This proved to not be a problem. When she didn't have to deal with people in person, her weakness disappeared and her strengths were on display.
She only communicated through phone and email. With us and with the shareholders, creditors, contractors and utility companies.
<br><br>
Meanwhile, she was barely relying on me. She served me without fully grabbing the hand I had extended to her. It was perfect. Her membership of the Kansankai remained a secret and everybody thought she was a loner, while in reality she was a tremendous help. My respect for her gradually grew.
<br><br>
''"Kifune-sama"'', she said with in her usual timid way.
<br><br>
It was hard to figure out what mood she was in. This was perhaps why she got pressured into debt in the first place. When there is no emotional response from someone, others may stop to see them as human. They would be just like a robot you could toy with. Or maybe her bullies were tempted to see how far they could push her before she did show feelings.
<br><br>
''"I want to thank you for what you did for me"'', she continued.
<br><br>
''"Too early"'', I promptly replied. ''"You're still a Mittens and you're still being bullied."''
<br><br>
''"I know... That's not what I meant. A girl hit me in class yesterday. I looked at her after she did that. Like... I used to always look away and take it. Before, I tried to ignore them and waited for them to get bored. I've... I've never looked someone in the eye like that. I could do it because I knew I wasn't trash. I knew I was useful... to you. I somehow wasn't scared because of that."''
<br><br>
I remained silent. Hana continued talking.
<br><br>
''"Kifune-sama, you've told me about your future before. I now know what my future is too."''
<br><br>
''"Do tell"'', I said.
<br><br>
''"I'll help you make the casino a success. I'll dedicate my life to helping you realize your dreams. That's my future."''
<br><br>
There was a brief pause. Then I heard the loud slurping of Hana finishing her drink with a straw. 
<br><br>
I burst out in laughter. ''"Listen, this is a very dangerous thing you are promising to me. If you say things like this, I will work you to the bone and I will make you sacrifice everything for me. Unless. You. Say. No. Do you understand?"''
<br><br>
''"Yes"'', Hana said. There was another slurp.
<br><br>
---
<br><br>
I let go of Hana's shirt. She was crying while curled up on the floor, no longer attempting to hurt herself.
<br><br>
''"Get up. It's alright"'', I said. ''"I didn't live up to your expectations. Your trust in me was misplaced. Your unwavering loyalty to me was undeserved. I am... truly sorry for that."''
<br><br>
I was in tears myself but I pushed on. ''"But don't let that bring you down. You don't need me anymore. The way you handled yourself at the end of the game... With that spirit in you, you can do anything on your own, you know."''
<br><br>
''"No! No, I can't!"'', Hana managed through her sobbing.
<br><br>
I keeled beside her. ''"I can't pay you the full prize money, obviously, but I can manage what you need to get rid of the housepet tag. It's nothing compared to the work you did for me."''
<br><br>
''"No! Kifune-sama, you said so yourself! You'll accept any sacrifice from me! A future where I'm not serving you is a future I don't want!"'', Hana said and raised her head for another bang at the floor. I grabbed her again to stop her.
<br><br>
Kirari smiled at us from above. ''"Oh my, the two of you are really getting ahead of things."''
<br><br>
''"Hana, I have no intention of giving you a Life Schedule. You are simply not a party to the matter at hand. However..."'', Kirari said while grabbing her chin. 
<br><br>
Maybe she was really thinking or maybe she wanted us to boil in the fear of the unknown a bit longer. The sealing light of the room was just behind her. Hana and I were in her shadow.
<br><br>
''"I have no intention to take the casino away from Kifune either. In fact, I came here to smooth things out. Sayaka, the papers, please. You know which ones."''
<br><br>
Sayaka put her briefcase on my desk and opened it. She quickly found what she was looking for inside it and handed the documents to Kirari.
<br><br>
Hana and I were still on the ground and Kirari crouched next to us, coming down to our level. ''"That billion Yen side bet payout can be taken care of immediately. Sayaka can authorize the transfer in seconds, if I tell her to. It's bad business to have a patron wait for their money, after all. You will have to sign this, however."''
<br><br>
She put the document on the ground in front of me. It started with 'Capital Alliance Agreement' in a bold font.
<br><br>
''"The bet will be paid out and all the loans the Kansankai has will be taken care of as well. In other words, all of your debt will be bought up by the student council."''
<br><br>
Once again, I had completely misread Kirari. Only now could I fully see the trap that I had walked into.
<br><br>
''"Kifune-sama, I..."'', Hana was saying but stopped herself. I understood her.
<br><br>
''"We'll be reasonable with the repayment schedule. I'll expect you to draw up a plan to show how much and how often you can manage to pay. You are good with those kind of presentations, aren't you? If the situation justifies it, I'm sure we can lend you even more money from time to time"'', Kirari said, dropping a pen next to the contract.
<br><br>
''"Sounds good, doesn't it? Of course, you can refuse, but then you won't stay in charge here for long. This has already occurred to you, I'm sure"'', Kirari said while standing up and walking to my desk.
<br><br>
She was offering a Life Schedule of sorts after all. Not to Hana but to me. I was to give up on my dream and disappoint everyone who believed in me, or become a servant of the student council. This was strangely ironic because my dream was all about not needing to serve anyone in the first place.
<br><br>
I was humiliated. It was not the casual sort that I had to endure many times, but a skillfully crafted, subtle and very deep type of humiliation.
<br><br>
I clenched my fists. ''"Why are you even offering me this? It is for your benefit or just for laughs?"'' 
<br><br>
Kirari was leaning against my desk with her arms crossed. ''"There are couple of benefits, but I won't get into the boring stuff right now. During the tournament, I told you that I can treat anything the student council owns as mine. So, if Ryouran Island is mine and you have dedicated your life to it, I consider your life to be mine as well."
<br>''<br>
''"Pick up the pen. Or don't. It's your choice"'', Kirari said with a smile. Her blue eyes were glittering. She looked genuinely curious about my next move.
<br><br>
I was was crushed by the weight of a natural ruler. All this time I had been swimming in her fish tank, which I mistook for the open sea. I could never outdo her. I understood this now. My ambition to to push her out of my way someday seemed so laughably naive in hindsight.
<br><br>
I stood up. ''"Hana, you understand what I'm about to do, right?"'', I said, while picking up the pen and the contract.
<br><br>
''"I'll follow your lead, no matter what. Your future is my future"'', she answered without hesitating. 
<br><br>
My mind was made up now. At least I wouldn't be a total disappointment to my parents or my fellow Kansankai.<br>
I carried the contract to the desk and signed without bothering to read any of it.
<br><br>
''"Splendid. Sayaka, please make the transfer"'', Kirari said.
<br><br>
''"Yes president."'' Sayaka took the contract, tossed in back into her briefcase and left the room with it. 
<br><br>
Kirari plunged onto the couch opposite the desk and crossed her legs. ''"Now then. Its nice to have some coffee once in a while. Drinking coffee so late make you feel like you are doing something sneaky, doesn't it? Will you join me for a cup, Kifune? I'd love to chat."''
<br><br>
''"I'll get the coffee maker going"'', Hana said. She was holding a napkin to her forehead.
<br><br>
Kirari was talking with the same excited look she had in her own office when we spoke there. ''"Now that the financial stuff is taken care of, tell me what your plans are. You must have had some ideas about what to add to this wonderful resort. A gym or indoor pool maybe? Bungee jumping from that hill on the far side? Parasailing? I'd love to hear it."''<br>
I guess I should have felt strong resentment or even be enraged. I didn't and I wasn't. Now that I had given up on overthrowing that what I could not, there was only relief.
<br><br>
''"Yes, president"'', I said.
<br><br>