61 - Episode 5: Fortitude Never Gives Up (3) ~The Case of Marianne and Lilitia~
This character's segments are just full of gags...
Meanwhile, as for the young lady who is actually a man inside (and a gambling addict).
"My heart is tremblin'~ Don't miss a single moment~ Fill me with hot passion~"
"You seem to be in a wonderful mood, Oneesama."
"Of course I am! It has been ages since I last visited a gambling den!!"
She was absolutely giddy. She was as excited as one could possibly be, singing a genius song as she descended into the darkness. Since her appearance was truly exquisite, to those around her, it looked as if a beautiful girl were skipping along while singing happily, but the reality was a hell where the inside was an old man.
Lilitia, walking beside her, tilted her head.
"There should have been some in the Imperial Capital, but did you not go? You can enter once you become an adult, right?"
At that casual question, Marianne stopped dead in her tracks, slumped her shoulders, and declared.
"I won too much and was banned..."
"Eh..."
"But! But it could not be helped! Those gambling dens themselves were so amateurish that even simple card counting worked, and despite using cheats, they had no real intention of actually deceiving anyone!! When I saw through it and used my own professional techniques to fight back with financial power, I won so overwhelmingly that before I knew it, sketches of my face were circulating and I was banned from every gambling den in the Imperial Capital!!"
The idiot lamented, "Why!?" but the specifications of this world were, after all, medieval.
While the concept of gambling existed, people who made a living solely from it were extremely few, and if one overdid it, retaliation via real fights from the house was common. There were types like gamblers, substitute players, or professional players, but those who made a living from it were almost without exception tied to a house, receiving a salary rather than living off their wins. Likely, as time progressed, they would become something like dealers.
In any case, the gambling dens of this world were still immature, in a transitional period, so if one employed the forbidden techniques that ravaged modern Earth, the dens naturally transformed into hunting grounds.
Yes, this idiot had overdone it in the Imperial Capital's dens.
It was like a player who never went pro but was famous in amateur adult baseball dominating a newly formed elementary school team. Moreover, she did so without any grace or mercy, not to guide her juniors, but simply because she found it amusing, so the emotions she elicited were likely awe and avoidance.
That being said.
"Why do the houses try to eliminate technical intervention...!?"
Representing all gamblers, Marianne lamented. They continue to use things that are disadvantageous to the customers, yet immediately remove things that are advantageous.
"Is it because they do not make a profit?"
Lilitia's words were the truth. A gambling den is not a charitable organization, so it was only natural that they would move to eliminate anything that prevented them from securing profits.
And that was why they had come to the gambling den of Bellfore.
"So this is the gambling house... is it."
"Well, it is."
Marianne muttered this in front of the shop, but Lilitia, who did not get the joke, only tilted her head.
The shop Marianne chose was the largest in the city. It was a ten-story building, a facility that cost a great deal of money by the architectural standards of this world. When the scale became this large, they generally became membership-only or required introductions, but while that was true for the VIP rooms on the upper floors, the lower floors were not so strict, and low-rate gaming tables were lined up.
"Ah, Oneesama. There is mahjong here too, mahjong."
While Marianne was scanning the hall with the eyes of a hawk, deciding what to play first, Lilitia noticed and pointed. Yes, a mahjong table. As could be seen from the publisher being the Romanet Great Trading Company, it was Marianne who had brought this to this world. Since they had one installed at their base, Lilitia had touched it before.
"Lilitia. I have decided."
Staring at the mahjong table, perhaps having thought of something equally trivial, she wore a slimy, low-quality grin.
"---From today, I shall aim to be the woman known as the Mahjong Saint...!"
This woman should probably start apologizing to various people soon.
●
Since Marianne brought mahjong to this world, the rules were based on those of Earth---no, Japan.
However, to prioritize ease of understanding, local rules such as old yaku were omitted, and while it was basically a hanchan match, these gambling dens adopted tonpuusen to emphasize turnover.
In this den, the shop provided at least one player, and the remaining three were filled by two customers. There were several rates, but Marianne chose the highest rate table among those lined up, where one silver coin equaled 1000 points. It seemed they used silver coins instead of point sticks, and Marianne and Lilitia filled boxes with twenty silver coins each, clinking loudly, and took their seats.
As a result.
(---Lilitia)
(Yes, Oneesama!)
When she sent a glance to Lilitia, who was sitting below her, Lilitia sensed the intention and discarded a center honor tile into the river, and Marianne immediately called. Her hand now consisted of three Easts, three Wests, two Norths, three Reds, and two Greens. A ready hand for All Honors. And looking at the river, either the general customer below her or the professional from the shop opposite her must be holding honor tiles.
The general customer above her seemed to be a beginner, as they were discarding honor tiles they weren't aiming for early on. They probably didn't have any left in their hand.
In terms of the game, she could have taken the win from them, but if she was going to do it, she wanted to steal from the shop. She also thought it would not be interesting if the mahjong population decreased because she bullied them too much. Therefore, Marianne focused her aim on the professional provided by the shop.
Then, the tile discarded when it reached the opposite side was North.
"Ron! That is 32,000 points for All Honors. Oh my? Are you bankrupt again? Then hurry up and bring more from the shop's safe!"
"This woman... again...!"
The professional opposite her gnashed his teeth and retreated to the back.
This was the reason Marianne persistently targeted the professionals. The general customers next to her only had the money in their pockets, but since the professionals were provided by the shop, they were effectively a bottomless pit. The more she won, the more she could withdraw, and since the shop's reputation was on the line, they could not say no. It would be different if she were using obvious cheats, but currently, Marianne was limiting herself to a combo-play with Lilitia. And the opponent did not possess the eye to call her out.
"Ho ho ho ho! I am on a lucky streak today!!"
The idiot was delighted, filling her box with silver coins brought from the back of the shop, but it was because she did things like this that she was banned from every gambling den in the Imperial Capital.
Then, just then.
"Yo, girls. Give me a game."
"Big Brother Nid!"
A man wearing a flashy shirt cut in. After giving silver coins to the general customer above her to have them vacate the seat, the professional opposite her showed a look of joy. He was a man with a cunning, snake-like face.
Seeing this, Marianne thought. The main act has arrived. At the same time, she felt it was time to call it a day.
"---. Very well. Shall we play?"
(I am ending this, Lilitia)
(Yes! Oneesama!)
While nodding magnanimously, Marianne sent a glance to Lilitia and performed a setup while mixing the tiles.
It had only been a few years since mahjong became widespread. Most halls applied a double-shuffle rule to prevent stacking. This place was no exception. Precisely because of this, fossil techniques that had faded in modern mahjong flourished.
Marianne, as the dealer, rolled two dice and got 1 and 1, and the next person, Lilitia, also rolled two dice and got 1 and 1. The total count was 4. Dealing from the wall that had been set up for 4.
Yes, a professional cheat involving stacking for a 2-2 roll, a technique considered a fossil in modern mahjong where automatic tables are the norm.
"---Oh my...?"
Once the dealing was finished and Marianne had neatly arranged her tiles, she raised her voice affectingly.
"What is it, Oneesama?"
Lilitia, who had cooperated in the setup, knew, but when she asked along with it, Marianne wore a slimy, malicious smile and knocked over her tiles one by one from the end.
"No, I have already won. This is quite troublesome. This is a Tenhou."
'A Tenhou!?'
Marianne, feeling pleased by the professionals and the gallery staring intently at her spread hand, got carried away and teased the audience, wondering if she should just pull off a Tsubame-gaeshi as well. This woman's brakes were still broken.
However.
"That is not good, girl. ---Cheating is a no-no."
The man with the snake-like face---Nid, put a stop to it there.
"What is it? Are you nitpicking this win?"
"The probability of a Tenhou is about 1 in 330,000. Drawing that on the first hand is impossible."
"My, even if it is slim, probability is probability. You are a gambler, so you should understand, right? ---On the days you can draw it, you can win no matter what you play."
"That is true. There are no absolutes in gambling. Even if it is a cheat, if you cannot see the trick, it is just an accusation. Fine, I will admit defeat for this round."
Despite complaining, Nid backed down easily, had the shop bring the silver coins from the box and the missing amount, handed them to Marianne, and declared.
"---Now then, girl. I am a hired professional gambler. Losing without a fight does not suit my nature. How about one more game?"
"Are you suggesting we play with face-down tiles?"
"No, no, let us stop the mahjong. Even if I tried to counter with a combo-play, I do not think I could win with my skill."
"Hmm... Fine by me. ---What shall we play?"
"The upper floors. ---Follow me."
Thus, Marianne and Lilitia were led by Nid toward the elevator leading to the upper floors of the shop. At that moment, Lilitia whispered softly into Marianne's ear.
"Oneesama, are you alright? This does not look like a very good flow."
"Oh, you can tell too?"
"I can tell... ---He is directing bloodlust toward you. Shall I beat him to death...?"
"Stay."
"Yes!"
"Well, money is involved. It is only natural to become bloodthirsty when losing."
"Even though he is a professional gambler?"
"Because he is a professional gambler."
Kufufu, Marianne smiled thinly.
"Letting it show on your face is out of the question, and letting it show in your attitude is for amateurs. But if you stop feeling frustrated after losing, then you are less than an amateur. Because that means you do not care about winning or losing. Listen, Lilitia. Gambling where you are not frustrated even when you lose is only possible when it is an extension of a hobby where your livelihood is not at stake."
She was an idiot who behaved freely and insolently, but she had an aesthetic as a gambler.
"Just as a knight is frustrated when losing a duel, or a merchant is frustrated when losing money in business---a gambler is frustrated when losing a match."
Stepping onto the elevator's platform, they headed to the upper floor.
"And if a revenge match is granted---this time, one aims for certain victory."
And upon arriving at the tenth floor---the top floor, a horse racing course spread out beneath their eyes.
●
I see, Marianne nodded.
Geoglyph had said that he did not involve the likes of the mafia in public horse racing. He probably wanted a clean image, but from the perspective of a gambler like Marianne, it was a bad move---or rather, he had misunderstood the foundation.
As the saying goes, if the water is too clear, the fish will not stay. Humans, to a greater or lesser extent, harbor darkness and shady parts. Even children in the process of growing up, setting aside their sins, do things like hide things from their parents and tell lies. Only infants could be called truly pure, but infants cannot even distinguish between good and evil, so there is nothing 'pure' about it. If anything, they are on the side of chaos.
If that is the case, a perfectly pure human without a single cloud may not exist in this world.
By extension, a gambling den is a place to expose those dark parts. A place to be released from the secular world that suppresses desires with ethics and common sense, and to taste a moment of liberation. Precisely because of that, it is a place where the essence of the human who visits is questioned, and Marianne believed that people who deny gambling from the root, rather than based on like or dislike, are cowards turning their eyes away from their own essence and ugliness.
Mafia and yakuza are representative examples of anti-social forces, but as long as individual rights are recognized, anti-social people will appear no matter what. If so, a receptacle to gather them is necessary, and if they are kept on a leash, they can be managed, yet those who blindly believe in the innate goodness of man and seek a clean image want to eliminate them.
And the result of that elimination is this lawless zone.
It is a rule that the darkness of society will go underground if it is not given freedom within a loose range of discipline (the gray zone). That is precisely why the term 'necessary evil' exists.
If the human world could turn on platitudes alone, then humans would not have needed laws from the start, isn't that so? Marianne thought of the former politician, Geoglyph, with exasperation.
The mafia eliminated from the horse racing likely thought of gambling that did not go through the ticket booths. She did not know if the match was between customers or between the shop and the customer, but they looked down from the upper floor and rejoiced or grieved based on the result.
If it were just that, it would be fine, but then the shop side cannot control it. If this Nid has proposed a match aiming for certain victory, then probably.
(Match-fixing... or interference with the race. I am unsure of the betting style, but if they eliminate the opponent's target horse from the sidelines, the worst result is a draw. There is certain victory, but no certain defeat. ...How boring.)
At this point, Marianne lost her motivation.
To her, it was fine for herself or the opponent to cheat. Whether it touched the law or violated house rules, the one who could not see through it was the fool. However, having a trick that had been seen through used against her was extremely irritating. If one is going to deceive, at least deceive them until the match is decided.
Hiding her mouth with the folding fan in her hand, she let out a sigh. Nid, who did not notice, looked back at her confidently and proposed.
"The game is simple. Just guess the horse that takes first place in the next race. The winner pays the same amount as the sum we settled on in the mahjong. How about it?"
"May I see the race sheet?"
"Sure. ---Hey."
Did he go through the trouble of hand-copying the schedule from the racecourse? Marianne, receiving the paper from a boy, checked it and let out an exasperated sigh. She was being looked down upon.
"---This will not do."
"What? You will not play?"
"The money bet in mahjong started at 20 silver coins. By the stage of the match with you, it has reached 1 gold coin. Even if I bet that and it comes back, it is only 2 coins. How boring. What a trivial gamble. And---"
Marianne paused her words and threw the paper she had received at the man.
"The stables are all the same. I do not know who your backer is, but you can rig this as much as you like, can't you? ---If you are going to swindle me, produce a slightly better sense of fairness."
I might play along, but I will specify the race, Marianne declared, and Nid nodded while a vein popped on his temple.
"---Heh. I will praise you for not running away."
"There is a big race this weekend, right? Not the Arima Kinen... but the Arima Memorial."
"Yeah, a race to commemorate the day horse racing began in Berture. Apparently, it was the name decided by the inventor of horse racing. I believe it was the third son of the Triad family. I forgot the name, though."
"Then, let us settle it at that Arima Memorial. Which horse will take first place."
"What if we pick the same horse?"
"I will yield to you. Since I made you change the race."
"The stake?"
"2,000 gold coins each."
'Ni...!'
Even the gallery present was left speechless.
In Japanese yen, that is 2 billion. A fight for that amount. It was simple, but the sum deviated from the realm of gambling.
"You must be joking, girl. You are not that rich---"
Toward Nid, who had a smile on his face, Marianne threw several bags of gold coins she took out from her storage magic. Nid, who reflexively caught the thrown bags, was left speechless by their weight.
"As proof that I will not run away, I shall leave 1,000 gold coins as a deposit. If that is still insufficient as collateral, I can use the rights to some of the products sold by my family's business---the Romanet Great Trading Company."
And when Marianne revealed her identity, the gallery began to buzz with noise.
"No way, the prized child of the Romanet Great Trading Company!?"
"The gambling den raider, Marianne, who is said to have ravaged every den in the Imperial Capital!?"
"From the way she trampled every gambling den as if it were her own and sucked out the shop's cash to the last drop... the woman also known as 'The Octopus Sucker'...!"
"Dishonorable! That nickname is dishonorable! Was there no more elegant alias!?"
Considering what she had done, it was a natural reaction, but Marianne protested in dissatisfaction, yet the buzzing of the gallery did not stop. Rather, it resulted in her being greatly feared, with people shouting things like "Hide your wallets! You will be cleaned out!" or "Sucked! I will be sucked dry! My assets!!"
"I see, so you are the publisher of the mahjong. No wonder you are familiar with professional techniques."
"Ahem... ---Now, what will you do? Are you a gambler who loses heart at this level? You."
"Ku... I accept. ---Well, it is already decided who will win this year's Arima, though."
Nid swallowed hard, but remembering the lineup of the specified race, he reluctantly agreed. This man was also someone entrusted with the order of the hall by the house. He likely could not back down.
However, no one noticed at the time that the face convinced of victory irritated the nerves of Marianne the gambling addict.
And she left the gambling den, leaving behind these prophetic words.
"I shall tell you something useful. It is a rule that in the Arima---not Arima, but Arima Memorial---monsters always lurk."
Next time is next week.