Because the exoskeleton's software had to be rewritten and motion capture data from professional volleyball players still had to be collected, the engineers would need about three days of intensive overtime to complete the upgrade.
During that time, Shirogane could clock in daily, run some tests, and collect a paycheck.
"Rinji..."
"What's up?"
"Are you sure 10,000 yen an hour is okay?" Shirogane looked uneasy. "If they're only paying me that much because I'm your friend—"
He hated the idea of gaining something at someone else's expense. It went against his principles.
"President, everything you're doing contributes to the progress of science and may influence the company's future strategies. Ten thousand an hour is more than fair," Rinji replied.
"Really?"
"Of course. Have I ever lied to you?"
"...No, you haven't."
Rinji had always been honest with him. Shirogane believed in him.
But when he thought about it: on one hand, Rinji was helping him overcome a physical flaw, and on the other, he was getting paid ten times the normal hourly wage.
It felt a little too good to be true.
Rinji himself was directly involved in the exoskeleton's redesign, spending the entire night helping build the new system. As a result, he spent most of the next school day yawning.
This continued until after school.
"Yaaaawn..."
"You look exhausted."
"I am." Rinji rubbed his eyes. "I was at the institute all night working with the tech team to revise the system. It wiped me out."
After class, he went to his usual low-activity astronomy club meeting.
Momo Ryuju was still lounging on her inflatable mattress on the rooftop, but today she wasn't playing mobile games—instead, she was fiddling with a deck of playing cards.
"What's up, Senpai? No gacha games today? Out of money?"
"No, I already grinded through the event."
She said this while continuing to sort the cards.
But soon, she scowled and threw them to the ground, cards scattering everywhere.
"Tch, I can't figure out her technique!"
"You seem really pissed."
While she sulked on the air mattress, Rinji knelt down and helped pick up the fallen cards.
"You heard about what happened yesterday, right?"
"Yeah. Some trouble at your family's Shinjuku casino. You skipped astronomy club—though honestly, I've never seen this club do any actual astronomy."
"A girl came into the casino yesterday and won thirty million yen."
"Oh, thirty million? That's pocket change for your family."
"It's not about the money," Momo growled. "If she was cheating, I'm not letting her off easy."
"You've got a good temper. If someone took my money—even fair and square—I wouldn't let them off." Rinji chuckled. "So what happened exactly?"
"Some girl around my age came to the casino and played blackjack. After losing her first two hands, she started winning every single game."
Momo frowned, recalling the events.
"It was ridiculous. Nearly every round, she got the perfect hand. There's no way she wasn't cheating."
"So you think..."
Rinji picked up a card and waved it in front of her.
"...she tampered with this deck?"
"Exactly. She handled the cards, so I'm guessing she left some kind of mark—"
"Sorry to disappoint you."
Rinji tossed the deck back in front of her and sat cross-legged on the floor.
"She wasn't cheating. You were."
"...What!?"
Seeing her shocked face, Rinji smiled.
"The casino rigged the deck during the shuffle. They prearranged the card order for a guaranteed win, assuming one-on-one blackjack. So long as the cards followed that sequence, the house couldn't lose."
"Then how did she win?"
"She noticed the pattern and used it to her advantage," Rinji said. "Like continuing to Hit after getting twenty, throwing a few games on purpose to shift the sequence in her favor."
"I see..."
"Of course, your dealer wasn't an idiot. To prevent losses, he probably used a Second Deal—drawing the second card from the top instead of the first. But if she noticed that trick, and had strong mental calculation skills, she'd know the card underneath. So, all your fancy cheats backfired."
"...You know a lot about gambling."
"I used to play cards with my old man at home. He taught me all sorts of cheating techniques. He took seventy cakes and countless snacks from me over the years. Said it was to 'teach me the cruelty of society.'"
"You never really talk about your dad. Was he a gambler?"
"Not exactly. But apparently, years ago—before I was born—he went into a no-man's-land casino, pulled a huge cheat, and won several hundred million yen. The local gang boss came after him."
"What happened?"
"He didn't get to keep a single yen," Rinji shrugged.
"Figures. Black market casinos don't play nice..."
"My dad brought a team and wiped out the entire casino. No one was left alive. Still didn't find anywhere to exchange the chips."
"..."
"Gambling's a bad habit. I usually tell people to quit."
Rinji pulled a cigarette from his pocket and stuck it between his lips.
Quitting gambling? Sure.
Quitting smoking?
...Let's not go that far.
"By the way, do Japanese casinos actually allow high schoolers in? Gambling at such a young age—no doubt they'll be betting on national policy when they grow up. Sounds like a future pillar of Japan."
"Ordinary high schoolers wouldn't be allowed in, of course. But there's one school that's an exception."
"Huh?"
"You've heard of Hyakkaou Private Academy, right? It's a school for training gamblers. That girl happened to be wearing their uniform."