The Game of Darkness(?)
As the sun set, the sky was dyed in dark hues...
"Phew..."
With a short sigh, Rudell emerged from the shower room, wiping his wet hair with a towel as he opened the window.
A cool breeze swept in, cooling his heated body, and Rudell savored the refreshing sensation.
"Amazing..."
The scenery of Lagrandria outside the window was truly spectacular.
Unlike the nightscape of the County, which was just beginning to develop, the Duchy's nightscape was as dazzling as that of a modern city.
Just as Rudell was enjoying the cool breeze and admiring the scenery outside the window...
"What are you doing?"
"Yikes!?"
Startled by Leje's sudden appearance and question from beyond the window, Rudell screamed and fell on his backside.
"Ahaha! Got you again!"
"Seriously, stop doing that. You really scared me."
Calming his pounding heart, Rudell rose from his spot.
At the same time, Leje entered the room and extended a hand towards him.
"So? What's up this time?"
"Do we need a reason to see each other? That's hurtful, you know?"
"Well, not really, but..."
"I was just bored, so I came over. Did I intrude?"
"Of course, you did, young lady."
Rudell narrowed his eyes and replied to Leje, who was giggling.
Of course, even with that response, Leje wasn't going to leave.
"You're not doing this to other people, are you?"
"No way. I wouldn't do this to anyone but you."
"Well, if you did it to others, rumors would have already spread throughout the academy."
The academy was a place where children, who were sensitive to rumors, gathered.
If the fact that they casually visited each other's rooms became known, there was no need to mention what kind of rumors would spread.
"By the way, what's that in your hand?"
Just then, Rudell noticed something in Leje's hand and asked in a puzzled voice.
A large board about the size of a human head and a stack of cards.
Anyone could tell that they were tools for a board game.
"This? It's a popular board game these days. I haven't had anyone to play with."
"A board game, huh..."
I used to play them for hours on end.
Suddenly recalling his past life, Rudell trailed off.
"So? Want to play together?"
"Bingo!"
"How do you play?"
"It's simple. You roll the dice to move your piece, draw a card, and..."
Leje explained the general outline of the game, and Rudell nodded as he listened to her explanation.
"In short, it's a game of life."
"You could say that, since it's a game that encapsulates a short life."
The game she brought was, simply put, a game of life.
Roll a 16-sided dice to advance your piece, draw a card assigned to each space, and reflect the result in the game.
Roll the dice again to determine success or failure related to the event, receive chips corresponding to the result, and ultimately the person with the most chips wins.
"Alright! I'll show you the skills of someone who was once called the Game Master."
"Hold on! Before we start..."
"Huh? What is it now?"
Leje stopped Rudell, who was moving his seat with a confident air, and took something out of her pocket.
What is she up to now...
As Rudell narrowed his eyes and looked at Leje, she pulled out a small crystal ball from her pocket.
"Ta-da!"
"What's that?"
Looking at the crystal ball that seemed like it should be used for a magic trick, Rudell tilted his head.
"It's no fun without a prize, so how about we bet something?"
"A prize? Is that the prize?"
"Of course not. This is a truth-telling crystal ball."
"A truth-telling crystal ball?"
"If you put your hand on it and answer someone's question, you can tell if it's true or false."
"You mean a lie detector."
There were quite a few of those at board game cafes.
With that thought, Rudell looked at the crystal ball.
"The prize is that the loser has to answer any one question truthfully from the winner."
"That's... a truth game, isn't it?"
"Exactly!"
Leje nodded at Rudell's following question.
"Hmm..."
At the same time, a low groan escaped Rudell's lips.
That was because Rudell had quite a few things he was hiding from Leje.
Matters related to the Cult, the vigilante work, the fact that he was from another world, and even what kind of events the world would be involved in in the future.
Of course, she wouldn't know about any of that, but he couldn't help but feel uneasy.
However...
"What? Are you scared?"
"..."
That thought was completely blown away by Leje's provocation.
"Fine. If you want it that badly, I'll accept your challenge!"
With a faint smile, Rudell took his seat, and Leje confidently laid out the board on the table next to him.
* * *
"Ugh..."
"Hehe, where did that confident look from earlier go?"
Leje spoke in a triumphant voice at the sight of Rudell groaning.
The chips piled up in front of Rudell were at most fifteen.
However, dozens of chips were already stacked in front of Leje.
If things continued like this, Rudell's defeat was certain...
"No! Something's wrong! How can someone roll exactly the number they want every time!?"
As if she had received the blessing of the so-called Dice God, her dice literally only produced the best results.
Suspecting that it might be a loaded dice, Rudell carefully examined it when she rolled it, but there was no trace of magic on the dice.
"It's all skill, Rudell."
"There's no such thing as that kind of skill in the world!"
Narrowing her eyes at Rudell, who shouted in an absurd voice, Leje picked up the dice.
"Want me to prove it? This time, I'll roll a 12."
Saying that, Leje threw the dice, and after rolling around the table a few times, it landed exactly on 12.
"This time, 8."
And the next time...
"This time, 1."
And the next time after that.
"This time, 3."
Every time Leje threw the dice, it landed on the number she had called.
"No, really, what's going on!?"
From Rudell's perspective, watching this was enough to drive him crazy.
"See? If you control the force you throw the dice with, you can make it land on the number you want."
"No, I'm saying, how is that even possible!?"
What is that, I don't know, it's scary.
Rudell retorted in disbelief, but with the results right in front of him, what could he do?
'Could it be... I've been tricked?'
At that moment, Rudell thought of a possibility and looked at Leje, who was wearing a confident expression.
The game itself was a trap from the beginning.
Knowing that she wouldn't stand a chance in a game of wits like chess, she deliberately proposed a game of chance and then used her superior physical abilities to overwhelm even luck itself.
If it were an ordinary person, they might have dismissed it as nonsense, but his opponent was Leje, who was practically unmatched in physical prowess.
"Don't tell me..."
"Huh? What?"
Looking at Leje's innocent face, Rudell was convinced that his guess was correct.
To think that Leje would resort to such a cunning tactic...
Regretting his mistake, Rudell received the dice.
Of course, Rudell hadn't completely lost yet.
The game of life was ultimately a matter of luck.
Even if you were doing well, you could still stumble at the end.
"Please..."
What Rudell was aiming for now was the golden square seven spaces ahead.
It was a square where you could draw a Golden Card, and as the name suggested, the effects of the cards drawn there were powerful enough to turn the game around in an instant.
If Leje can do it, so can I.
How hard could it be to just throw a dice?
With that thought, Rudell held his breath and focused all his senses on his fingertips.
Slowly, carefully, Rudell released his grip, and the dice that fell from his hand began to rattle as it rolled across the table.
Rudell watched the spinning dice with a nervous expression.
Leje also kept her eyes on the dice, and the spinning dice began to slow down.
After a few seconds...
"Yes!! 7!!"
"Huh? Wha!?"
The lucky number after all!
Seeing the dice land exactly on 7, Rudell cheered, and Leje made a face as if to say, "This isn't right."
"Alright! Time to check the card!"
What kind of card will it be?
Feeling his heart pounding, Rudell slowly reached for the card.
And...
"This is my winning card!!"
Rudell shouted confidently and drew the card.
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